PODCAST | Are racial biases still the main cause of poor transformation at the top of SA companies?

The annual Sanlam Transformation Gauge is the only consolidated, sector-focused research report that takes a holistic measurement of economic transformation in SA, accounting for all elements of BBBEE.

Researched by Krutham (formerly known as Intellidex) and published in partnership with Sunday Times Business Times, it highlights what is working, what is not working, and how we can drive innovative solutions to reinvigorate our collective efforts to actively and deliberately include all South Africans in our economy.

The key insights from the 2023 edition of the report will be unpacked in the four-part Sanlam Transformation Gauge podcast series hosted by Andile Khumalo, CEO of KhumaloCo and the report's co-founder.

In the first episode, Khumalo is joined by Ray-ann Sedres, Sanlam's chief transformation officer, Norah Sehunoe, Santam's executive head of human resources, and Sibongile Vilakazi, president of the Black Management Forum, to discuss the management control element of the BBBEE codes.

Management control has consistently been the lowest-scoring element among South African companies since the establishment of the Sanlam Transformation Gauge in 2021. 

The results of the latest report found the following reasons for this: 

• 51% of the BBBEE verification agencies that responded to a Sanlam Transformation Gauge survey said it's due to resistance by corporate SA to seeing black people in leadership positions;
• 23% said is due to a scarcity of skills; and
• 26% said that it's both.

Are racial biases still the main cause for poor transformation at the top of South African companies? Listen to the podcast now to hear what the experts have to say:

Click here to download the full 2023 Sanlam Transformation Gauge report.

Click here to watch a recording of the 2023 Sanlam Transformation Gauge conference.

This article was sponsored by Sanlam.