CGF ARTICLES, OPINIONS & EDITORIALS
February 26,
2025 197 197 
By Jené Palmer CA(SA) GCB.D (CGF Research Institute: Director)
Despite compelling research confirming a strong alignment between Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives and corporate financial performance, Goldman Sachs and Deloitte have become the latest big corporations to formally announce that they are reviewing their DEI policies in light of the United States’ revised position on diversity, inadvertently giving credence to claims that diversity policies lead to “reverse discrimination”.
April 11,
2024 2081 2081
By Jené Palmer CA(SA) GCB.D (CGF Research Institute: Director)
Let’s just focus on the business and less on governance! Governance stifles innovation and adds red tape! How often have you heard similar sentiments being expressed?
The reality is that the role of the board has evolved. Global issues and topics such as geopolitics, diversity and inclusivity, climate and nature, and artificial intelligence, have rendered the traditional approach to board oversight as far too narrow. Today, boards must adopt a more stakeholder-inclusive approach and embrace different perspectives when considering strategy development, risk management and operational and ethical oversight. However, good governance has always been a fundamental competency for board members rather than a set of bureaucratic skills which imposes an additional burden on decision-making within the organisation.
August 10,
2023 3177 3177
By Terrance M. Booysen (CGF Research Institute: Chief Executive Officer)
Given the multiple governance failures seen across South Africa, and mostly within the public sector, there is no doubt that this fragile situation is a national disaster. The costs of these governance failures are far worse than the actual monetary losses reported to date. Earlier this year the Reserve Bank estimated that the country’s energy crisis alone is causing losses to the SA economy of approximately $51 million (approximately R942 million) every day.
October 12,
2022 2452 2452
By Terrance M. Booysen and peer reviewed by Dave Loxton (Schindlers Attorneys: Partner)
In the context of the proposed changes set out in the Protection of Constitutional Democracy against Terrorist and Related Activities Amendment Bill (“POCDATARA Bill”) currently before parliament, if it is passed in its current form, this indeed may become the “final straw that breaks the camel’s back”, and all aspirations of holding the South African government to account for poor or no governance may come to an end.
December 8,
2021 2992 2992
By Terrance M. Booysen and peer reviewed by Jené Palmer CA(SA)
With the dust of the recent Local Government Elections (LGE) now settled and still no consequences against the July rioters in KwaZulu Natal and Gauteng; one has to question if South Africans deserve the real benefits of proper governing as a foundational basis that underpins our constitution, especially when citizens “turn a blind eye” or are part of the problem themselves?
April 29,
2019 5636 5636
By Lucien Caron (CGF Lead Independent Consultant) and peer reviewed by Terrance M. Booysen
An experienced board member will fully appreciate the various mechanisms contained within the organisation’s Memorandum of Incorporation (‘MOI’) that can be altered to best suit the environment within which the company operates. More often than not, the MOI is trivialized as simply a ‘founding document’ of the company and once approved, it is filed and gathers dust. However, over-looking the importance of the MOI -- which contains information about the core elements of the organisation’s governance -- amounts to an injustice to the nature and intent of this document, not least also the company and its stakeholders.
September 11,
2018 5290 5290
By Terrance M. Booysen (Director: CGF) and peer reviewed by Dr. Peter Tobin (GDPR & POPIA Specialist)
In recent months, there has been much discussion and focus on GDPR -- the new European Union (‘EU’) General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 -- which came into force on 25 May 2018. This EU legislation aims to strengthen the application and enforcement of data privacy laws, not only through its principles and the obligations it places on organisations, but also through its global reach.
January 23,
2018 11073 11073
By Terrance M. Booysen and peer reviewed by Professor Michael Katz (Chairman: ENS Africa)
With the media spotlight on the dismal state of governance in some of South Africa’s public and private organisations, as well as many of its state-owned enterprises, there cannot be enough said about the enormous role and duties expected of the directors of an organisation.
February 8,
2016 10527 10527
Article by Terrance M. Booysen
It is a fact; since the collapse of so many iconic organisations across the world, the subject of corporate governance has intensified.
May 18,
2015 13188 13188
Presentation by Terrance M. Booysen
...it is imperative that we make a distinction between words such as “accountability”, “responsibility”, “must” and “should” – and specifically so in the context of its use within a boardroom and its organisation.