George Williams
Risk Advisory Partner
Governance is an integral part of any company, regardless of size and industry. Application of good corporate governance and ensuring that it is embedded in the company is vital and complex at times. South Africa has legislation (Companies Act, JSE Listing Regulations and the Public Finance Management Act and National Treasury Regulations in the Public Sector) and best practice standards (King IV and Sector Supplements) that are available to organisations and will assist them in implementing and embedding proper governance practice.
South African governance principles have evolved since the advent of the first King Report in 1994 and there have been regular updates based on changing circumstances in governance around the world. King IV was released in 2016 to take changes like the IV industrial revolution, inequality, climate change, globalised trade, radical transparency, rapid technological and scientific advances, geopolitical and social tensions and other emerging risks and trends into account. King IV has also been revolutionary as it is the first governance code that focus on governance outcomes. King IV promote corporate governance as integral to running an organisation and delivering the governance outcomes of an ethical culture, good performance, effective control and legitimacy and tries to move away from organisations just using a tick-box approach.
The King report also introduced sector supplements for Small and Medium Enterprises, Municipalities, Non Profit organisations, Pension/ Retirement funds and Public sector organisations and entities. The main aim is to make it easier for these entities to apply the principles based on the nature, size and context of the organisation.
The emphasis on good corporate governance in the South African focuses mainly on transparency, ethics, responsibility and accountability, stakeholder engagement and management and risk management amongst others, while the importance of these aspects may differ for organisations, applying good governance is not a one size fits all solution, at BDO we have solutions that can assist all types of organisations in ensuring good corporate governance. Our services include:
- Board assessments
- Independent assessment of your current governance practices;
- Design of Board and Committee charters as well as instruments of delegation and other governance policies
- Board, Committee and individual Director assessments
- Governance training and Induction sessions
- Sustainability consulting and advice;
- Strategic governance advice to organisations.
At BDO we cater for both public and private sector clients, we have specialists in both sectors and are willing to assist and provide the best solution for your organisation.
