Author: Kate Thompson Davy
Articles by Kate Thompson Davy
22 March 2021
FD Riaan Koppeschaar explains how Exxaro is using new tools for old jobs
Riaan explains how Exxaro used drones during Covid-19 lockdown level 5 for remote stockpile assessment.
28 January 2021
Surviving and thriving in public practice
ACCA member Mwendabai Kalaluka is a renaissance man who has built a thriving private accounting practice.
08 January 2021
iOCO CFO Jo-Ann Pohl: Choose ethics, choose sustainability
ACCA-qualified Jo talks about how the intentions behind our actions determine a much bigger success.
13 December 2019
Learn, unlearn, relearn (Part 6): What the professionals say about building leadership practices
Forget chasing the points or beefing up your CV. Lifelong learning is now a requirement for executives and thinking professionals marching confidently into the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Executives revealed to Kate Ferreira.
13 December 2019
Learn, unlearn, relearn (Part 5): The only leverage a women leader has is herself
Forget chasing the points or beefing up your CV. Lifelong learning is now a requirement for executives and thinking professionals marching confidently into the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Executives told Kate Ferreira.
13 December 2019
Learn, unlearn, relearn (Part 4): Re-balancing your knowledge portfolio
Forget chasing the points or beefing up your CV. Lifelong learning is now a requirement for executives and thinking professionals marching confidently into the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Executives revealed to Kate Ferreira.
13 December 2019
Learn, unlearn, relearn (Part 3): Keep adding strings to your bow
Forget chasing the points or beefing up your CV. Lifelong learning is now a requirement for executives and thinking professionals marching confidently into the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Experts revealed to Kate Ferreira.
13 December 2019
Learn, unlearn, relearn (Part 2): A new world order and an ethical imperative
Forget chasing the points or beefing up your CV. Lifelong learning is now a requirement for executives and thinking professionals marching confidently into the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Executives revealed to Kate Ferreira.
13 December 2019
Learn, unlearn, relearn (Part 1): Why finance leaders should embrace ongoing education
Forget chasing the points or beefing up your CV. Lifelong learning is now a requirement for executives and thinking professionals marching confidently into the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Executives revealed to Kate Ferreira.
03 November 2019
Moving into Africa CFO Award winner discusses connecting with Africa
Standard Bank FD Arno Daehnke discusses African countries' buzz, innovation and work ethic.
14 June 2019
Be patient and enjoy the journey, says Fedgroup CFO Sheldon Friedericksen
Sheldon tells Kate Ferreira about his stresses, stress-relieving activities and his long-term aspirations.
03 May 2019
Special feature (part 5): "Future-proofing" the finance profession with ethics
Despite less-than-ethical behaviour in the finance industry, professionals still trust CAs to do the right thing.
18 April 2019
Special feature: The accountant of the future - goodbye, grunt work
In part 1, experts look at how accountants will focus on relationships rather than numbers.
13 December 2018
CFOs' new relationship with tech explained - Deloitte's Arun Babu
The Enterprise Solutions head says CFOs are now important players in taking calculated technology risks.
28 November 2018
Navigating the winding path of finance transformation
Mountain biking and finance transformation: Deloitte's Carryn Tennent enjoys the twists and turns of both.
06 September 2018
Finance Indaba Q&A with Blacfox's Kerushan Govender
Kerushan Govender is the CEO of Blacfox, a technology advisory company that brings IT decision-makers and vendors together.
04 September 2018
Finance Indaba 2018 Q&A: Cashbook's Margreet Peverelli
Margreet Peverelli tells us about the Cashbook solution and why they're showcasing it at Finance Indaba 2018.
03 September 2018
Draftworx joins the Finance Indaba 2018 ranks
Draftworx provides automated drafting and working paper financial software to about 6,000 accounting and auditing practices.
14 August 2018
Finance Indaba 2018 Q&A: The Finance Business Partner's Carol Lupiya
Carol Lupiya is the Africa region director for The Finance Business Partner. With a background that spans financial and management accounting and management consulting in public and private sectors, Carol brings her broad experience to companies with the finance business partnering concept - one that she tells CFO Magazine is the key to finance driving better business performance and businesses escaping the 'silo-ism' mentality.
11 July 2018
Partnership in private equity: Q&A with RMB Corvest's Mike Donaldson
Successful private equity is about patience, measured risk, and critically the right marriage of management and funder, says RMB Corvest CEO Mike Donaldson. It takes the same long term view and prior homework as a marriage - with the same extensive potential for mutual benefit.
11 June 2018
CaseWare Africa partners with Finance Indaba 2018
Finance and auditing software company CaseWare Africa is a global leader in its field.
07 June 2018
Intellection partners with Finance Indaba 2018
Business consultancy Intellection builds long-term efficiency solutions
06 June 2018
XDS joins Finance Indaba 2018
XDS is one of the major providers of consumer and business data to the local market
06 June 2018
Agile's Tshego Sefolo: The CFO is key to successful PE
"When we invest in businesses we look at the quality of the CFO; that individual is critical as they become our eyes and ears into the business."
04 June 2018
Finance Indaba 2018 teams up with The Finance Business Partner
The Finance Business Partner promises to take you from "calculator to game-changer"
31 May 2018
Finance Indaba 2018: Cassel&Co looking beyond the 'count' in accounting
Cassel & Co's Georgina Barrick talks to us about how the changing trends in finance affect specialist recruitment.
23 May 2018
Deloitte Africa's Rushdi Solomons on rethinking internal audit
The CFO must rely on a tech-enabled, data-enabled and business-savvy internal audit function, he says.
22 May 2018
ACCA partners with Finance Indaba 2018
The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) is a global body for professional accountants, whose members are some of the world's most sought-after financial professionals.
22 May 2018
Tax Ombud joins Finance Indaba 2018
South Africa's Tax Ombud settles tax disputes
21 May 2018
Finance Indaba 2018 joined by Cashbook
Cashflow specialists Cashbook offers state-of-the-art software aimed at automating and facilitating high-volume financial transactions.
14 May 2018
Finance Indaba 2018 welcomes silver partner Hyphen
Financial management company Hyphen manages financial transactions through its industry-leading, custom-built solutions
11 May 2018
QuickBooks signs on as Finance Indaba 2018 partner
QuickBooks is the world's number one accounting solution software program, with more users worldwide than any other program.
09 May 2018
InvoSet and Finance Indaba 2018 partner up
Online invoice payment system company InvoSet provides an easy-to-use and unique online payment system for suppliers and buyers
08 May 2018
Cassel & Co joins Finance Indaba 2018
Recruitment specialists Cassel & Co specialise in sourcing and placing finance and accounting professionals.
04 May 2018
Finance Indaba 2018: How CIPC is transforming through tech
CIPC commissioner Rory Voller speaks about the efficiency gains and digital drive of the regulator - as well as the big financial reporting shift that your business needs to know about.
03 May 2018
Finance Indaba 2018: how Futuresense partners with CFOs
Futuresense is a silver partner at the 2018 Finance Indaba Africa.
24 April 2018
CIPC joins the Finance Indaba 2018 line-up
The Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) is part of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) group
23 April 2018
Futuresense signs on for Finance Indaba 2018
Futuresense is a niche software-solutions consultancy that works with CFOs, and implements solutions across the full suite of Oracle Hyperion financial software.
20 March 2018
UCT GSB Director Mills Soko's new vision for education
My generation must transform the fortunes of the continent, says UCT's Mills Soko.
02 February 2018
Yum! KFC's Sharon Naidoo gets strategic - and quickly
KFC Africa CFO Sharon Naidoo is firmly focused on today's agility and tomorrow's leadership.
17 January 2018
Can ethics be audited?
Finance must be the torch bearers of ethics, says Nkonki's risk advisory boss Emma Mashilwane
20 October 2017
Service and integrity first, say public sector CFOs
Navigating your way to success in the public sector is a matter of hard work, strategic thinking, a duty to serve, and – hopefully – uncompromising integrity, according to Ramasela Ganda and Rajesh Mahabeer. The two were sharing the stage as part of a panel discussion at the second annual Finance Indaba Africa, held in Johannesburg on 12 and 13 October 2017.
16 October 2017
Finance and the entrepreneurial spirit: insights from top CFOs at #findaba17
What happens when the discipline of finance thinking and the creativity of entrepreneurs collide? MyBucks CFO Ryan McDougall and Evan Tsatsarolakis, FD of Taste Holdings shed some insight into their experiences of start-up culture and working closely with entrepreneurial CEOs in a panel discussion at the Finance Indaba on 13 October 2017.
13 October 2017
To get into the C-Suite, be bold, informed and deliberate, say top CFOs
The road to the C-Suite might not be a straight line or predictable, but for both Illovo Sugar CFO Mohammed Abdool-Samad and Barloworld Equipment Rental CFO Ramasela Ganda, it was a path walked with clear intention. This pair of top CFOs shared their experiences of career progression during an insightful panel discussion themed “Breaking into the C-Suite”, held at Finance Indaba Africa on 13 October 2017.
13 October 2017
To the gold at the end of the rainbow: Mqondisi Gumede dazzles at #findaba17
What if we could achieve major economic growth in a single generation? What if a lack of good education or even rampant corruption were not barriers to this growth?
13 October 2017
Africa is the epicentre of opportunity - Lee Naik opens #findaba17 day 2
TransUnion Africa CEO Lee Naik opened the second day of Finance Indaba Africa 2017 with a promise that resonated with the eager crowd: The future is brighter than you think and we Africans are poised to make the most of it.
12 October 2017
"The offering" - Standard Bank's solution co-created with accountants and entrepreneurs
If you could design a banking solution for your startup, would it look like a traditional bank offering? Standard Bank is betting on no, gathering a tech and customer-focused team and giving them major leeway to experiment with the entrepreneur banking model. According to Standard Bank’s Angé Baard, Paton Raman, and Gugu Sithole, who presented the idea to intrigued accountants and entrepreneurs at Finance Indaba Africa on 12 October 2017, it is built on the concept of co-creation. The team is so focused on flipping the usual path of product development that they haven’t even named this service yet, calling themselves simply “the offering” or “the proposition”.
12 October 2017
Standard Bank making waves with innovation for public benefit
Standard Bank is putting their money where their heart is, with the launch and growth of two “public good” programmes: the Standard Bank Incubator, and Feenix. Head of the Incubator, Jayshree Naidoo, showcased the work of these projects in one of the opening sessions at the Finance Indaba 2017, held on 12 October.
20 June 2017
Jason Wright, Cape Union Mart CFO: Balancing staff and systems with growth
Jason Wright, CFO of Cape Union Mart, took an unusual route to get where he is today. Having finished matric, Jason went into gainful employment in the IT space before going on to study information systems, also gaining experience in web development and project management. It was only in his mid-twenties that the commerce bug really bit.
10 January 2017
Take the chances you are presented, says BAT CFO Wayne Beifus
When Wayne Beifus took up his current role as area head of finance at British American Tobacco (BAT) South Africa around nine months ago, it was the culmination of a two-decades-long journey that sent him around the world and had him working on four continents and in seven regional offices. Once again on home soil, Wayne brings all his cultural experience to bear on the local team, reconnecting with South Africa at the same time. In this exclusive interview, Wayne talks to us about navigating diverse workplace cultures and increased uncertainty in globalised business. “In general, South African employees want to be empowered to operate within their own space but they are sometimes apprehensive to take the space. When I started to give permission to the team to make the calls, we saw quick results.”
25 October 2016
White privilege and white guilt: Servest CFO Peter Walsh talks tough on transformation - #findaba16
Servest Group CFO Peter Walsh earned as many laughs as he landed “blows” in a challenging talk on transformation presented at the Finance Indaba Africa in Johannesburg on 13 October 2016. Walsh’s talk was called “Embracing transformation: Head, heart and hands”, and he kicked off by “owning that white male problem” – being a white man talking about transformation in South Africa. Still, he persevered, winning over his audience with his frank and self-deprecating address, and posing some extremely tough questions to his audience.
18 October 2016
Mavericks, freaks and geeks: Martijn Aslander about attitudes for a changing world - #findaba16
We’ll never again have economic growth like we have known before, says Martijn Aslander. And that’s okay...
17 October 2016
This round is on me: crowdfunding and Beerhouse - #findaba16
“We weren’t expecting so many people,” explained entrepreneur and Beerhouse founder Randolf Jorberg, as he put out the crate of craft beer at the front of the room, inviting the audience to help themselves. Still, the promise of beer brought the crowd in, and the resulting fascinating case study in crowdfunding kept them.
16 October 2016
Diversity makes business sense: Gusti Coetzer chats to Brett Tromp - #findaba16
Diversity in the workplace is both constitutionally mandated and fundamentally good for business. This was the message from award-winning Discovery Health CFO Brett Tromp, in a discussion moderated by Talent Africa’s Auguste Coetzer, at the Finance Indaba held at the Sandton Convention Centre on 14 October 2016.
14 October 2016
Let's get personal: Graeme Codrington on the renaissance of business in a digital age - #findaba16
“Students of the future are often students of history,” Futurist Graeme Codrington told attendants of the inaugural Finance Indaba Africa 2016, during his presentation on 14 October 2016. They study moments of change and disruption in history to understand what underlies huge disruption in our present age. Graeme – an international speaker, consultant, and best-selling author who has built a career out of preparing companies for change – believes that the echoes of the past, the ones that were present at the last major social renaissance, are present in the world today, and companies fail to heed them at their peril.
14 October 2016
From finance to value: Mervyn King rethinking the role of the CFO - #findaba16
Finance industry giant Professor Mervyn King has motivated for a “rebranding” or repositioning of chief financial officers (CFO) into chief value officers (CVO). Professor King made a strong case for this during a public discussion with Johannesburg Stock Exchange CFO Aarti Takoordeen, at the second day of the Finance Indaba Africa 2016.
13 October 2016
Oversight and accountability: Auditor-General captivates Finance Indaba - #findaba16
A presentation by South African Auditor-General, Thembekile Makwetu was one of the hottest tickets at the inaugural Finance Indaba Africa – which opened at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg on 13 October 2016. The Auditor-General’s speech kicked off the 'Finance for Africa' track programme at the Indaba.
