Policy U-Turn: What South Africa’s SMEs and CFOs Need to Know
South Africa’s business community has once again been reminded that policy certainty is fragile. Two major regulatory initiatives, both aimed at shaping the environment for small businesses, have taken very different turns. While labour relations reform has been welcomed, proposed credit regulations were abruptly pulled, leaving CFOs to deal with the conseque
Boats, Bentleys and Broken Trust: What CFOs Must Learn from the Maumela Asset Seizures
When the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) recently froze R325 million worth of luxury properties, supercars and even boats linked to businessman Hangwani Morgan Maumela, the headlines almost read like a crime novel. Behind the drama lies a sobering truth: a family trust tied to Maumela reportedly received over R2.3 billion from state contracts. The seized [
CFO Influence in Unstable Markets: Lessons from Kia South Africa’s Nafisa Kistan
When Nafisa Kistan took the CFO seat at Kia South Africa, she entered one of the most disrupted industries in the world. With decades of finance leadership behind her, Kistan shares what it takes to lead with strategic influence, navigate operational complexity, and make board-level decisions in an environment shaped by volatility, uncertainty, and change. [&he
South Africa’s CFOs Face a Warning Signal: Liquidations Surge as Small Businesses Buckle
The latest figures from July 2025 should give every chief financial officer in South Africa pause. Business liquidations rose sharply to 155 in the month, a 16.5% increase compared with July 2024. Close corporations carried the heaviest burden, with 26 more closures recorded than a year ago. On the surface this looks like another data […]
If Your CFO Strategy Is All Tech and No Heart, You’re Already Losing:The CFO’s New Balancing Act
Your company has just rolled out a shiny new AI tool that promises to “revolutionise finance.” It crunches data, predicts forecasts, and practically winks at you while telling you to cut costs. But then a long-time customer calls with a real-life problem. Suddenly, all those algorithms cannot match the simple power of a human voice […]
Forget EBITDA, Your Real KPI Is Whether You Made It to Dinner: The Myth of the “Iron CFO”
Let’s get this out of the way: CFOs are not robots. We like to think we are, crunching numbers at midnight, surviving on coffee strong enough to dissolve a spoon, keeping companies afloat while everyone else dreams about beach holidays. But behind every “iron CFO” lies a very human body and mind, both of which, […]
The Death of Excel: CFOs Can No Longer Afford to Trust It
Finance leaders today find themselves under relentless pressure to deliver more accurate reporting, faster decision-making, and stronger risk management than ever before. At the heart of this challenge lies one essential truth: the credibility of the finance function depends on its ability to deliver consistent, transparent, and reliable numbers that business l
Best of Breeds or Best of Mess? The CFO’s Guide to Smarter Technology Choices
When it comes to digital transformation, the temptation to buy into sweeping, one-size-fits-all solutions is strong. Vendors arrive armed with slick demos and promises of simplicity: “Just adopt our platform and all your headaches will vanish.” But as any seasoned CFO knows, the financial reality of technology seldom matches the marketing pitch. What truly
Turning Management Into True Leadership
Step into any boardroom today and you will notice a common thread: technical brilliance is abundant, but true leadership often feels scarce. Across industries, organisations pour resources into management training, teaching teams how to run processes, optimise performance, and deliver results. Yet, they often neglect the subtler but far more powerful dimension
Cybercrime Meets the CFO’s Agenda
Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) stand at a unique intersection of strategy, finance, and operational reality. While growth, capital allocation, and efficiency are rightly celebrated as core responsibilities, the ability to protect organisational value has become equally critical. In a world where digital systems underpin nearly every business process, risks are