The Importance of Transparency and Emotions

I enjoyed the visit from Mr Kapelus the other day because I had a good idea of what he was presenting after working at the AICC for two weeks. I think corporate governance is a crucial aspect for business in order to contribute to sustainable development, and like he said, to be valuable.

I often like to compare the things I have learnt this week with the mining industry because its an area I’m very interested in. Even though mining itself is not sustainable, most mining companies deal with the triple bottom line so that its accounted for and managed in a transparent way. An ultimate example here is the Mining Charter. I think it is imperative especially in today’s world where globalisation, the needs of society/stakeholders and reputation is a growing trend.

And remember the important quote from the presentation guys: “Never have bad debts” -Paul Kapelus-

With regards to Ms Naidu’s presentation, I felt that a lot of things that were said I already knew, but afterwards I realised how I don’t use my emotions to my advantage. I also found it very interesting how hers coincided with that of the previous day’s BWSA presentation. The importance of “listening”, “communicating”, and “resilience” came forth in both quite prominently. Even though it was from different perspectives namely the corporate environment and the psychological environment, they both stress how important it is to have these qualities. Both highlighted emotional and physical health which is essential to be highly effective in the workplace (looks like I’m going to have to stop eating all those take-aways).

The tests Ms Naidu provided showed that I have little confidence in myself. I don’t agree entirely with my results as I know I am a confident person on a social scale, but I do realise there is a difference between confidence in the workplace and confidence in my social life. I don’t think I’m emotionally illiterate but I would like to improve my EIQ to enhance my decision-making. Just a quick question I want to raise: Is there a big difference between confidence in the workplace and confidence in one’s social life?

Here are the website addresses of the AICC and the CCDU: http://www.aiccafrica.com and http://www.wits.ac.za/ccdu/