Eskom Board Chairperson Dr Mteto Nyati has urged executives to surround themselves with the sharpest and finest minds if they are to turn around their organisations.

To successfully turn around organisations and companies, he said they must have self-mastery and the leadership must focus on systematic issues.

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Further, he said people appointed into leadership positions must know why they are given the tasks so that they implement them excellently.

Delivering his inspiring message, Dr Nyati also urged collaborations in order to achieve excellent and effective leadership, a strategy that he has applied to bring a turnaround at Eskom.

He said the self-journey towards personal mastery included accountability, self-awareness, personal values, vision and purpose, leadership of others as leaders dream more, learn more and become more.

His career in business is rich as he has led several organisation in South Africa, including Altron, MTN, Afrox, IBM and currently Eskom.

The chairperson emphasised that improvement in the continent was highly dependent on the calibre of leaders it has, hence urged the private sector to ensure accountability, offer honest feedback and invest in leadership philosophies cemented on integrity.

“Our strategy at Eskom is keeping things simple. To ensure effective leadership, you should focus on systemic issues and do not be afraid to make the tough calls, be proud of your scars and ensure resilience; the hard thing to do and the right thing to do are normally the same thing. You must manage yourself before you can lead someone else.”

“Surround yourself with the best to ensure great governance. As a result, Eskom has returned to profitability and reached E16 billion for the first time in eight years, signalling a positive strategic step. The impact on brand is attracting talent and ensuring collaborations and partnerships,” he said.

Further, he likened his personal values to software that eventually shapes behaviour. He said cultural norms from his rural background including his quiet nature which once limited his visibility in professional environments, shaped him.

He further implored business leaders to be clear when they define their organisational direction.

“If you do not know where you are going, any direction will take you there. If you want to walk fast, walk alone, but if you want to walk far, walk together,” he said, while encouraging purpose driven leadership and collaborations.

Invest in, support EswatiniBank – Minister

Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg has noted EswatiniBank’s restructuring efforts as they consider what they could do differently to ensure that they are moving in the right direction.

He noted that personally, from a private sector perspective, the business he was involved in earlier in his life banked with EswatiniBank and enjoyed a lovely relationship, but on a personal note he did not bank with them until last week.

He was speaking during EswatiniBank Business Gala Dinner held at the Royal Swazi Convention Centre on Tuesday, where Eskom Chairperson Dr Mteto Nyati gave a keynote address.

Attended
The event was well-attended by business gurus and the finest minded leading organisation served as a platform for open dialogue, a space for collaboration and an invitation to co-create solutions that contribute to economic growth, financial sustainability, and national resilience.

Rijkenberg encouraged and appealed to the business sector to support EswatiniBank. He said it was not to say they should leave their current bank, but he noted that the bank needed their support to ensure success as it is their mandate to grow the economy and support development in the country.

He said it was necessary to hear Dr Nyati’s keynote address because government could learn from what Eskom has been through and turnaround strategy.

Secondly, he noted that the country had state-owned enterprises (SoEs) that had high performing board of directors while others were not performing.

“Dr Nyati noted the need for tailor made strategies for the places they occupy, which is what we should lean towards. We are also delighted to see the new shoot in what Eskom is creating for the economy as we see upgrades after they fixed their issues. We are joined at the hip with South Africa, when it goes up we do the same and the opposite is true,” he said.

The minister also noted that locally, economic growth requires more funds as government did not have enough funds to implement everything needed to be done.

He said at the moment, the country’s capital budget was bigger than what could be afforded. He said the country’s ambitions were way beyond what could be realised through the budget.

He also said government had a very ambitious growth target, hence his appeal to the business sector and the SoEs to think outside the box. They bring solutions to any of the problems that government has.

Rijkenberg added that another suggested solution was taking debt, but that creates an unsustainable economy that chases away the private sector, which is the engine of growth.

He further stated that government was creating and maintaining a sustainable path so that trust and hope are created through banks and the private sector from a fiscal perspective.

“As an economy we have two main problems; poverty and unemployment. Therefore, as government we are focused on growing the economy as a solution to these two problems where people would get employed, grow the economy so that people come out of poverty.

“Government does not have all the answers and solutions, if you think you have solutions please come forward because it is a team effort. We can work a plan out on the private-public partnership based on those solutions. If we are going to continue to maintain the principle of government funding everything, we are not going to succeed because government’s budget is not big enough,” the minister.

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