Woolworths insists it backs transformation

The Black Management Forum said on Monday that companies should be prepared to have transformation issues scrutinised in public.

President Jimmy Manyi stood by the forum's statement last week querying Woolworths' transformation imperatives. He said that forum member companies, such as the retailer, ought to lead by example.

The forum last week said the food and clothing retailer had missed an opportunity for transformation at its annual meeting. Manyi said non-executive chairman Buddy Hawton should have stepped down at the meeting as Hawton's retirement would have been an opportunity for the company to transform its top structures.

Hawton's term has not expired. Woolworths' annual report says that one-third of directors retire each year but they may stand for re-election.

Manyi said Hawton could play a mentorship role and help the company with skills transfer. “The fact his term had not ended was neither here nor there. He's a 70-year-old man who has already done it all and got the T-shirt.”

Woolworths said it was “surprised” that the forum had not engaged the company directly. “Woolworths has always been willing to engage directly with the forum,” it said.

However, Manyi said the forum's strategy was not to “have tea and biscuit discussions” when dealing with transformation but to engage constructively with companies serious about transformation. The forum would not hesitate to take a company to task publicly if it was not serious about transformation.

Of the seven members of top management, five are white males of whom one is a foreign national, according to Woolworths' annual report. Forum deputy president Nomhle Nkumbi-Ndopu said the retailer had only three black non-executive directors and one black executive director, versus 11 white directors.

Woolworths, however, said its approach to transformation was “holistic in nature” and it was “committed to transforming the way the business operates across all aspects of the trade and industry department's scorecard”.

It was on track to meet transformation targets by 2012, the retailer said. It was “delighted” Judy Dlamini had joined its board in July as the “latest addition”.

Source: Business Day

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