The SAIS Circular 

2020 Quarter 2

 

As we head into the fourth month of lockdown and the eye of the COVID-19 storm, stress is likely to be heightened and resilience reduced.  Nonetheless, the economy still needs to function and life needs to continue, though in a modified normal.  The SAIS has modified its operations to be able to allow our members and students to still interact with the Institute, but in a way that is safe for all. 
 
Our first Board and Industry Forum meetings for 2020, where held virtually.  All of our lectures are now being delivered virtually.  It is most likely that the remainder of the SAIS’ meetings for 2020 will also be held virtually.  Despite the wonders of technology and the ease with which we are still able to interact, there is something to be said for human interaction.  To be able to really see a colleague’s smile, interpret their facial expression and “feel” their presence in a meeting is missed. 
 
This edition of The Circular includes some SAIS News on our upcoming AGM and our recently launched in-house CPD offerings.  It also contains some interesting reading on the complexity of business, as a result of external environmental factors, as well as learning being a learned behaviour – definitely some food for thought!  Enjoy the read. 

 

 

Some SAIS News

 


SAIS Annual General Meeting (AGM)

The SAIS AGM will be held mid September 2020. Please keep an eye on your inbox for our official invitation.
 

Stockbroker Exams

A reminder that registrations are open for Semester 2 of the Stockbroker Exams and close on 21 August 2020. Some lectures, however, begin in July so best get those applications in soon!

 


 Continuous Professional Development (CPD)


SAIS has extended the 2019/2020 CPD cycle to 31 August 2020.

The 2020/2021 CPD cycle will run from 1 September 2020 to 31 May 2021 and CPD hours will be calculated on 9 months instead of 12. The 30 hours CPD requirement will be pro-rated for the 2020/21 CPD year only, resulting in a total CPD hour requirement of 22 hours for the 2020/21 CPD year. This means that any CPD hours logged as completed between 1 June and 31 August 2020 will be allocated to the 2019/2020 CPD cycle.
 
Those needing a few more hours to meet their 2019/20 CPD requirement, will be glad to know that SAIS launched their own CPD offerings, through its online learning platform, earlier this quarter. These complement the current CPD offering. There are currently 8 courses, freely available to SAIS members in good standing. All courses are verifiable and include a short-question based assessment. CPD courses currently running: 

Keep an eye on our website for new courses.

Members will shortly receive an indication of the hours that they have logged thus far. Unfortunately, a large portion of the membership have logged less than 10 CPD hours for the 2019/20 year. Members are reminded that the SAIS requirement is 30 CPD hours per annum, with 20 hours spent on structured CPD and 10 on unstructured.  For more detail on CPD, please see the CPD Guideline Document.

 

 Articles of Interest

Visit our new webpage to view some interesting reads about the industry from a local and international point of view.

The SAIS communication that you’ve been receiving lately is also stored here so feel free to click through if you are looking for something that previously piqued your interest.

 

Legislative Update

 

From the FSCA

A notice on the Extension on the Compliance with the Financial Markets Act Requirement has been issued –

  • The Authority had previously communicated an extension due to the nationwide lockdown. Now, due to the continued nationwide lockdown, the Authority has decided to extend the period prescribed in section 90  with a period of 2 months for regulated persons with financial year ends between 31 May 2020 and 31 July 2020. 
  • Compliance with the specified timeframes contained in the JSE Listing Requirements and the JSE Debt Listing Requirements is outlined in this notice.

 

 

Food For Thought

 

Meetings and Email Are Here to Stay, So Make the Most of Them

“In BCG’s latest corporate complicatedness survey, we found that the highest-performing companies continue to rely on these office mainstays. The big difference is not what these companies use but how they wring the most out of them. They stick to specific protocols for meetings and minimize email chains.
 
Following in high performers’ footsteps of keeping things as simple as possible won’t help an organization streamline a complicated, convoluted collaboration culture overnight. But adopting more common-sense policies for meetings and email is a great place to start. With so many people continuing to work remotely because of the fallout from the COVID-19 crisis, it’s more important than ever for work-related communications and collaboration to be productive and efficient.”[1]
 
Click here to read more and have a look at the interesting infographics outlining the difference between simple and more complex companies regarding communication.

 

Learning Is a Learned Behaviour. Here’s How to Get Better at It.

“A growing body of research is making it clear that learners are made, not born. Through the deliberate use of practice and dedicated strategies to improve our ability to learn, we can all develop expertise faster and more effectively. In short, we can all get better at getting better…”[2]
 
This time of crisis has taught all of us that new ways of operating and thinking about how we need to do things differently.  This Harvard Business Review article outlines three practical ways to build your learning skills, namely:

  • Organise your goals;
  • Think about thinking; and
  • Reflect on your learning

 
Read more about how this impacts not only individuals but companies too.

 

[2] https://hbr-org.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/hbr.org/amp/2018/05/learning-is-a-learned-behavior-heres-how-to-get-better-at-it

 

 

In Other News...

 



The Intergovernmental Fintech Working Group launched its website in April.
 




JSE announces new sustainability segment.