EDITOR'S NOTE

A warm welcome from all of us at Fasset to our winter edition of Facts, which features updates, news and insights about our achievements, activities, and plans for the future.

Our CEO, Ayanda Mafuleka, reflects on the 2018 financial year and looks ahead to new interventions that focus on basic education level training in subjects such as Maths and Accounting and engaging with colleges and Youth Employment Services to give our youngsters the chance for a better future.

Technology is changing the landscape of our industry in leaps and bounds and Ebrahim Boomgaard, Fasset's PQA Director, takes a look at trends and changes in the careers of the future leaders in our sector.

Highlighted too is our effective Academic Support Programme that assists unemployed and employed learners to complete their degrees and professional designations and our multi-million rand contribution to 125 'missing middle' Accounting students.

As we progress through 2019, Fasset entered the second quarter of the financial year on 1 June, with the enthusiastic team geared up and in high spirits about implementing all the skills development interventions that have been planned.

In our news is the opening of two additional offices at Majuba TVET College in KwaZulu-Natal and at King Hintsa TVET College in the Eastern Cape. We have successfully appointed two interns to run the offices and drive the career awareness programmes to local communities. We welcome Sinenhlanhla Mazibuko at the Majuba TVET College in Newcastle and Sandisiwe Notununu at the King Hintsa College office to the Fasset team.

As Youth month unfolds, we look forward to all the activities and festivities that will take place to celebrate our young people. Fasset is a proud supporter of youth empowerment, and our programmes are designed to equip our youth with the skills that are much needed in this sector. We have also executed 18 career guidance interventions to date, with a target of 40 for the 2019 financial year.

We hosted two LO Teacher Training seminars in the Eastern Cape - on 15 May in Lady Frere and on 16 May in Queenstown - as we continue to mobilise educators through our successful partnership with the Department of Higher Education and Training. Be on the lookout for the updated lifelong learning events planned for the year and remember to book your seat early to avoid disappointments.

Best of luck to all who are writing exams at this time, and warm wishes for a great second half of 2019 to everyone.

Zandile Skosana
Marketing and Communications Manager

FROM THE CEO'S DESK

In the 2018/19 financial year Fasset experienced several changes that encouraged growth, which we look forward to increasing in the forthcoming financial year.

On 1 April 2018 we appointed a new board, headed by Njabulo Ngwenya (CA) as Board Chairperson. Mr Ngwenya is a young and dynamic leader who is bringing a fresh perspective, as well as energy, expertise, and experience to the board.

Changes continued in mid-July 2018 with the move to new and larger premises in Ferndale in Randburg, giving us more space to roll out our strategy of strengthening educational impact on the industry and broader society.

In January 2019, I was appointed to lead the dynamic team at Fasset as the CEO. This was a particularly noteworthy honour as I am a beneficiary of Fasset Initiatives, which enabled me to achieve my qualification as a Chartered Accountant.

A training incentive grant for employers was introduced to encourage training, which will help us achieve our objective of ensuring continuous professional development. This training incentive kicked off with a call to employers to apply for this grant for all seminars and workshops undertaken.

Other milestones in the past year include:

  • Fasset updated the Fasset Bursary Scheme Criteria to accommodate learners from households with an earning bracket of R0 to R600,000 per annum, which allowed more learners to be recruited.
  • During the financial year of 2017/18, Fasset obtained an unqualified audit opinion and as management, we are working on improving this.
  • We closed the year with a marked improvement on our targets set in the SLA agreement with DHET. The team showed remarkable dedication, teamwork and spirit. I can therefore confidently note that the numbers achieved for 2018/19 will be surpassed in the 2019/20 financial year.
Challenges faced

Among the specific challenges that Fasset faced in the year was the limited landscape and environment for creating long-term strategic engagement in the sector due to the license period. The recent gazette announcement of the removal of the SETA limit of license increases the outlook and impact strategies that we can engage in to ensure that we play our part in gearing the sector to be ready for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

The transition from outsourcing to insourcing presented a myriad of challenges, but with a good change management strategy in place, we have been navigating the processes with proactive responses, faster response times and open communication lines in any unforeseen areas.

Looking ahead

Fasset has introduced new interventions that are focusing on basic education level training in subjects such as Maths and Accounting, and engaging with community colleges and the YES (Youth Employment Service) programme to assist matriculants and graduates.

In conclusion, I would like to thank the Fasset team for their commitment. Fasset has strong values, and as CEO, I am entrenching these in every facet of the organisation to make sure we are living them out in all we do. We look forward to entering into partnerships with all our stakeholders, including the DHET, employers, professional bodies, learners, and the general public.  

Ayanda Mafuleka
Chief Executive Officer

AYANDA MAFULEKA'S NUMBERS JOURNEY

Fasset CEO Ayanda Mafuleka shares her personal journey of growth and determination.

"After school, I studied for a BCom in Accounting at the University of KZN and started my career in finance working at Transnet. I then worked for the Sunflower Housing Company followed by the SA Post Office, where I was also studying for my BCom Hons (CTA) as I wanted to qualify as a Chartered Accountant. I joined the National Treasury to complete my Articles and qualify.

I worked at the Department of Home Affairs for three years, after which I joined Johannesburg City Parks & Zoo. From there, I was appointed by the National Credit Regulator as CFO, and then as CFO of African Exploration, Mining and Finance Corporation SOC Ltd.

Throughout my career of 16 years in finance I have always strived to leave a mark. My legacies are clean audits, sound financial management, and turning around an entity from a deficit to a surplus by putting effective processes, controls, and governance structures in place. I always lead A-teams and I make sure that I excel in my area of expertise.

In my journey as a young girl from Umlazi, a township south-west of Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, I always envisioned a bright future, but I could never have imagined the wonderful journey I have had.

My position as CEO of Fasset, an organisation that supported me and gave me the opportunity to achieve my dream of being a Chartered Accountant through their various initiatives, makes this much more than just a job for me. I want to give back and develop as many young Ayandas as possible because without this institution's bursary initiative, I would not be here."

THE CAREERS OF TOMORROW'S SECTOR LEADERS

Ebrahim Boomgaard, Fasset's Research Director, shared his insights about trends and changes in the careers of the future leaders in our sector with the Facts team.

Q: What trends has Fasset identified in how careers in our sector have changed over 10 years?

EB: The advent of generation 4 technology is changing some of the processes within the sector, and manual jobs such as bookkeeping have been affected. Having said this, the affordability of automated packages could mean that SMMEs will continue to use the more manual approach. In previous years, students could graduate with an accounting qualification and enter the job market; now with more funding opportunities to gain professional designations, there is greater interest in specialisation.

Q:How would you profile the career of a future sector leader?
EB: More analysis is now required - even though automated systems help greatly, the data still needs to be analysed.

Important too, is that employees are increasingly in need of flexibility to do multiple jobs to diversify their income source, though it will continue to be a structured path given the influence of professional bodies in the sector.

Future leaders will need to take the changes into account within the sector and be able to adjust - they will need to be able to understand the concepts of hotdesking and uberisation; they will need to be astute managers of people, managing individuals on a per individual basis.

Q: How important is Industry 4.0 and other technology advancements in this sector?

EB: The importance cannot be over-emphasised and it's an essential component of the sector looking ahead. More and more automation will happen within the Fasset space, and within the finance world it will be around banking, utilisation of applications for services, and platforms, which will be the interface between the client and the organisation.

The advent of blockchain may also have implications for the accounting profession. If transactions are conducted on the blockchain platforms, the need for accountants to record the details may become obsolete, likewise, tax professionals may also see the work they do compromised.

These technology advancements will force tomorrow's sector leaders to be agile, to confront the issues of multiple jobs, and adapt to refined offices and other trends mentioned. But most importantly it will require the leaders to get the best out of the disjointed teams - they will need to strategize around ways to bring the best out of the millennial.

Q: What changing values and strengths will tomorrow's sector leaders need to have to be successful in their careers?

EB: Innovation, the ability to take all parts of a sum to achieve goals, the ability to adjust to the changing office environment, adopt or create a working structure to get the end product done, be client-centric, cutting-edge, and be the trendsetter who leads the pack.

Q: What role will Fasset play in ensuring the success of the careers of tomorrow's leaders?

EB: We will continue to use research to ensure that the skills needed by these leaders are identified and implemented within the curriculums of institutions and professional entities, and we will build enhanced interaction with the sector to identify and increase awareness of the new skills required.

Fasset will ensure that research done by the sector also finds its way into the domain. More importantly, what we do with the research findings is critical - acting on the findings is crucial.

Q: What trends does Fasset predict for how careers in this sector will change?

EB: Artificial intelligence will lead to changes in the job space, and the need for increased data analysis and its use will grow too. We will need to do things better, faster and possibly cheaper, with client-centred approaches. One thing that will remain essential is service and interaction between humans.

Quick responses to changes and thorough research and analysis are all essential to ensure we are timeously aware of the changes or pending changes.

The legislation of AI and the monitoring of it will remain key. Consider the scenario: automation used on a farm to grow produce which is taken to the retailers by self-driven trucks and then packed on shelves by automated services. The challenge will be that the robots will not be buying the products and the unemployed people will not be able to afford them. Technology must be embraced with optimism and also with caution.

FASSET'S SUCCESSFUL ACADEMIC SUPPORT PROGRAMME

Fasset's Academic Support Programme assists unemployed and employed learners (at NQF Levels 6 - 10) to complete their degrees, professional qualifications and/or designations.


Fasset has funded seven programmes under the Academic Support programme, three of which were with University of Fort Hare. The full programme scope benefited more than 2,200 learners who were helped with problematic subjects.

The programme has delivered Academic Bridging Programmes for:

  • 480 students at University of the Free State
  • 100 in Year 1 at University of Fort Hare
  • 100 in Year 2 at University of Fort Hare
  • 100 in Year 3 at University of Fort Hare
  • 1,000 with Unisa College of Accounting
  • 300 at Cape Peninsula University of Technology
  • 600 through SAICA PIVOTAL bursary scheme
Improved pass rates were achieved with regular weekend sessions where learners were given questions to be answered under exam conditions, with facilitators assisting them to mark their papers and manage exam technique challenges. Facilitators were also available for one-on-one consultations.

MISSING MIDDLE IS AWARDED BURSARIES

Fasset contributed R14.6 million in student bursaries to 125 Accounting students from second year up at Cape Peninsula University of Technology's Graduate Centre for Management, through Fasset's PIVOTAL Bursary Scheme with Academic Support in April this year.

The targeted students had to prove that their annual household income was not more than R600,000 - the so-called 'missing middle' grouping. The bursaries cover tuition, textbooks, transport and accommodation expenses.

Fasset is addressing the financial burden that prohibits students from completing their studies. The students are also given access to a tutor on a weekly basis, attend lectures during university holidays, and are given soft skills training in communication, interpersonal skills, decision-making, and lifeskills.

Fasset's CEO, Ayanda Mafuleka, is enthusiastic about the potential for career development and successful futures for the young students through this programme. "It's heart-breaking to see young people and their parents sacrifice so much to get into a tertiary institution, only to struggle with limited funds and difficult subject matter. Fasset will continue to be committed to funding undergraduate students to ensure consistent growth in the skills required in this sector."