This article was published in the 10-July-2014 issue of Finweek Magazine
Chartered Accountancy has long been a male-dominated profession. But that is slowly changing, with the help of the AWCA (African Women Chartered Accountants) forum. In this article we explore the impact this organisation is making on the rise of African women CAs in South Africa. Continue reading
This article also appeared in Finweek Magazine in their 20-Feb-2014 issue
Our generation, our parents’ generation and generations before that, were raised to go to school, get a grade 12, and get a degree in order to get a job. But the world has changed. Job security and certainty about tomorrow, no longer exist. We cannot depend on anyone else but ourselves for financial and career security. We as parents and our educational system should be training our kids to be entrepreneurs, so that they can create jobs instead of working in jobs for someone else. We should be teaching them to be resourceful, resilient and creative, so that they can create their own successful tomorrow and don’t depend on someone else for their future. Continue reading
This article also appeared in Finweek Magazine in their 14-Nov-2013 issue and online
Raising capital isn’t an easy decision for an entrepreneur. In order to expand rapidly, do you give up equity and control to get the investment you need? Or do you take the slower growth track, where sales fund your company’s growth and you get to keep 100% control of your baby? South African-born software company Everlytic chose to go the funding route. Finweek interviewed managing director Walter Penfold about Everlytic’s recent capital raise and what they learnt from it. Continue reading
This article was also published in Finweek on 19-Sep-13
Meet some of the world’s youngest entrepreneurs.
This article also appeared in Finweek Magazine in their 19-Sep-2013 issue
A few days ago, my 8-year-old son Jayden asked me the dreaded question that makes every parent cringe. No, not that one. The other one – about the tooth fairy. It went something like this: “Ma, why does the tooth fairy only pay me R10 per tooth, while all my friends get R100, R50 or R20?” They had obviously been comparing their pay-outs in the school playground. In my scramble to change the subject, I joked about trading in our current tooth fairy for a new one who paid private school rates. But his question prompted me to do some research on the subject. Is there an average tooth price that the tooth fairy pays in South Africa? How do we compare to other countries? Based on my informal research, some interesting results emerged. Continue reading
The uncomfortable truth: Even if we’re not selling for a living, we are all in sales. Get over it. Continue reading
If you’re a consultant, entrepreneur, working in a start-up, a student, a freelancer, or a creative, you’ll know what it’s like to feel isolated, unproductive or demotivated in a home-office environment.
A co-working space solves all of these issues. It’s a shared office space where people can work independently but not alone, share ideas, collaborate and work productively while growing our businesses and business networks.
Despite the recent explosion of co-working spaces in South Africa, there just aren’t any in the Sandton, Johannesburg area currently. I’ve approached a number of co-working space operators around South Africa and a few are keen to start one in Sandton, provided there is enough demand here.
If you’re keen to join a co-working space in Sandton (or know someone who is), please let me know by email (colette@mbaconnect.net) by Wed 14-Aug-2013. This will give us a better idea of the demand and how many people a Sandton co-working space would need to accommodate.
What are the benefits of a co-working space?
1. Dynamic, vibey, motivating environment where you can work independently but not alone
2. Network and collaborate with smart, like-minded people
3. Bounce ideas off other people
4. No need to work alone from home anymore
5. Close to home, but not at home
6. Flexible short-term leases (e.g. month-to-month)
7. Low rental costs per month, no long-term commitments that your business cannot afford
8. Rent more or less space as your company grows or downsizes
9. Ideal for consultants, entrepreneurs, MBA students looking for a private space to study, startups, freelancers, creatives, etc.
10. Has all the facilities you need like meeting rooms, wireless hi-speed internet, security, printing, copying, etc.
Thanks for your help. Looking forward to your feedback.
All the best
Colette Symanowitz
colette@mbaconnect.net
This article also appeared in Finweek Magazine in their 09-May-2013 issue
Dave was in the market for a new car. One afternoon he happened to be driving past the Ferrari showroom when he thought: “Why don’t I take one for a test drive?” An hour later he returned from an exhilarating drive in a Ferrari 458 Spider, with the top down and the engine roaring like a caged panther. Dave was sold. He asked the manager: “So, how much will this one set me back?” The manager responded: “Tell me how much you want to pay….”
If you were like Dave, you probably would have also done a double take. Pay what you want for a brand-new Ferrari? Seriously?
As much as we wish it would, Pay What You Want (PWYW) has not penetrated the luxury sports car industry, at least not yet. But worldwide, more and more business people are experimenting with this controversial new business model across many industries: from restaurants, the music industry, to gaming and movies and free online services like Mozilla Firefox and Wikipedia. So far all of these industries centre around goods and services that don’t cost a lot. Could PWYW spread to industries with big ticket items like cars and property? More importantly, does the PWYW model work? And do the numbers make business sense?
This article also appeared in Finweek Magazine in their 02-May-2013 issue
A few years back my mother, a Professor and Head of Department at the Wits Faculty of Social Work, was forced to retire at age 65. Despite being very good at her job and showing no signs of mental or physical deterioration with age, she was stripped of her professorship and all that she could still do for the department, simply because she hit 65. In today’s day and age, is retirement at age 65 not an archaic concept that needs to be put to rest? Continue reading
This article also appeared in Finweek Magazine in their 11-April-2013 issue
Before World War 2, development capital was limited largely to wealthy individuals and families. It was only in 1946 that venture capital (VC) began to emerge. That year the first two VC companies, American Research and Development Corporation (ARDC) and JH Whitney & Company, were created in the US. Since then, entrepreneurs have pretty much depended on VCs to build high-growth businesses. But that could be changing. With the advent of crowd-funding and the dramatic drop in costs to launch an Internet start-up, do tech entrepreneurs still need VCs? Continue reading
www.colettesymanowitz.com 