In May last year, I wrote a column which earned me a fair amount of criticism and praise. Titled What happened to transformation?, the opinion piece ventured that not enough was being done to introduce an empowered person to the top spot of our listed ICT companies.
Sure, I said, we are seeing more people of colour - and women, thank God - on our boards; however, the CEO or MD role remains conspicuously white and male.
Criticising both sides of the black economic empowerment game, I asked: "Is this the last bastion of the old guard - let's get empowered, but not so much that we lose 'sensible' control? Or is it that our senior black people have far more opportunity to fatten their bank accounts by buying into companies, sitting on boards and 'networking' with key comrades?"
Well, at last things appear to be changing.
Full circle
Looking back, it's interesting that the catalyst for last year's column was the announcement that GijimaAst CEO John Miller had announced his imminent retirement. You see, the company has again provided the provocation for a column on senior-level transformation.
Staff say he has "rejuvenated" the company through his energy, passion and commitment to taking the business forward.
Kimberly Guest, senior journalist, ITWeb
Personally, I would like to believe the good folk at GijimaAst read my column and subsequently answered my plea for "some youngish black entrepreneur to take the industry by storm through shrugging off old mantles, creating new markets and opportunities, and proving to all that talent is not determined by colour of skin or the number of companies in which shares are held".
But if I step outside my ego for a minute - don't you know who I am? - I must admit it is unlikely I had an influence on the appointment of State IT Agency (SITA) executive Jonas Bogoshi to the company's top spot.
And if industry sources and company insiders are to be believed, SITA's shareholder (government) must be kicking itself for letting Bogoshi slip away.
Leading the attack
Staff say he has "rejuvenated" the company through his energy, passion and commitment to taking the business forward. Investor analysts who follow GijimaAst have little criticism for the progress made since his appointment, particularly as the organisation appears to be on an upward trajectory. And partners and customers say they are experiencing a marked change in its commitment to service.
The only criticism that appears is his links to the public sector.
Industry players have pointed to the company's capture of the Department of Home Affairs "Who Am I Online" project, the human resources business process management portion of National Treasury's Integrated Financial Management System and a few other lower profile deals.
"Did Bogoshi use his influence before he left SITA to slip a few tenders GijimaAst's way? Is he still cosying up to his buddies in the public sector? Does he give GijimaAst an unfair advantage?" they ask.
Of course, these are relevant questions that haven't completely been answered by the big man himself. But my insiders say Bogoshi does not involve himself in public sector negotiations. Sure, he knows what's going on; but his sense of ethics prevents him from doing anything that may appear untoward, they say.
To my mind, Bogoshi is a black CEO who is not only doing his job well, but probably going home at the end of the day satisfied that he achieved something tangible out of his hard work.
For the naysayers who are sure to follow: no, I don't believe Bogoshi is an exceptional case of black talent; and yes, Bogoshi could probably make more money whoring himself out in BEE deals and board appointments.
I still maintain that when transformation involves rolled up shirtsleeves and hard work by all parties, the outcome is far more positive than that offered by some half-hearted shoeshine job.
Change is here, make it work for you!
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