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Role of agri-businesses
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business with the best stakeholder
in that specific environment. The
producer can no longer afford to
do business based on sentiment.
Obviously all these stakeholders
will use different mechanisms to
gain the business of the producer.
It goes about his own long-term
vision in respect of the customer.
How do they serve the interest
of the customer? Do they offer
special loyalty programmes? How
do they invest in their business in
order to gain a customer?
A range of these normal com
mercial practices could eventually
result in the producer doing busi
ness with that specific organisa
tion. Aspects such as price, range
and service are also important
aspects on which his choice is
based.
Senwes invested in excess of
R200 million in the silo business
over the past few years. It is
important to invest in the infra
structure and it is the right thing
to do. You have to have a spe
cific attitude. What is Senwes’
objective? Personnel are really the
people who make things work.
Personnel are driven by motiva
tion and not only salary. Such
things are timeless. A company is
a company for its customers but,
it also goes about how you can
change the environment, how you
can change lives and even more
important, how you can change
South Africa.”
Agri-companies stand before a
huge and important choice - they
have to be sure about where they
are heading and how they should
define their objectives. The cus
tomer has to know that the organ
isation with which he conducts
business, acts in his interest.
But how often should one
think about this? “On a minute-
8
to-minute basis. However, if you
change your goals every minute
you will not achieve anything.
You have to revisit your goals on a
continuous basis.”
WHEN DO YOU SAY NO?
Strategy goes about what you say
“no” to and when you should say
“yes”.
It is important to know where
you are heading. It is important
to say no. You have to be able to
stand on your own two feet and
to know what you can do. It is
even more important to know
what you can’t do and to say no
to what you can’t do. It is easy to
say yes, but a lot more difficult to
say no. These are the things which
define you. To say no means that
you have to be sure of the things
you want to achieve.”
BE FOCUSED ON THE FUTURE
You have to look at the future
JUN/JUL 2017 • SENWES Scenario
from the outset. When I joined
Senwes in 2010, I challenged all
the strategies for the first eight
months. We are now working on
a rolling 10-year basis and every
year we move ten years ahead. The
reality is that businesses have to
looked further and further into
the future.
The legacy which we leave
behind is important to me. I want
to leave an organisation behind
which is better than the one I
received. I want to change peo
ple's lives, I want to change South
Africa and for this reason I am
willing to take a chance, as I did
with Nation in Conversation.
CONCLUSION
The strategy of a good company
is timeless. The methodology
may change over the years, but
you have to communicate with
all concerned - this has never
changed.