Up-to-date management accounts can track performance, reveal trends and highlight opportunities, ultimately enabling better decisions and stronger growth. Read on to find out what management accounts can tell you about your business and how you can use these insights to plan ahead, stay in control and ultimately improve your bottom line.

What are management accounts?       
Management accounts are a set of summarised financial reports. They’re similar to annual financial statements but they aren’t as formal, and they’re produced much more frequently – usually monthly or quarterly. They’re all about providing relevant financial data for informed business decision-making. As such, there’s no fixed format. Instead, management accounts should summarise and combine the financial reports you need to make smarter decisions. These financial reports might include some or all of the following.    

What can be included in management accounts?

What can management accounts tell you?

 The right set of management accounts can do more than record numbers – it can provide meaningful insights that help your business to perform better, plan ahead, and stay in control.

Climate change is real, and failing to prepare is guaranteed to have devastating consequences.  According to the World Economic Forum, climate-related risks are now ranked among the most severe global threats to business stability, and every business will need to take steps to minimise the impact. So, how can you prepare your business to not just survive, but thrive, in an increasingly unpredictable climate? Here are five practical approaches.

Climate change impacts the fundamentals of business operations. Rising heat affects productivity, floods and storms damage infrastructure, droughts disrupt supply chains, and new regulations increase compliance costs. Many leaders still believe their sector will be spared, but no industry is truly insulated. Just as one-third of startups fail because they never properly defined their target market, businesses that fail to assess climate risks may find their models undermined by forces beyond their control. The message is clear: failing to future-proof your business, will result in extremely hard times ahead.               

Start with the risks you’re facing
The first step is to identify which climate risks could most directly affect your operations.  These can be physical (think floods, wildfires, and extreme temperatures), or transitional, such as regulatory changes and shifts in customer expectations.According to the latest prediction models, South Africans can expect a hotter, more erratic climate with the country warming at about twice the global average. This means more very hot days that will hurt worker productivity and equipment reliability. On top of this, the country is also experiencing heavier downpours with increased flood damage. These damaging floods, such as those seen KwaZulu-Natal in April 2022 and the Western Cape in September 2023, will result in enormous insurance and economic losses and prolonged business disruption.

Despite the flooding, the country is also not in the clear when it comes to water stress. The 2015–2018 Cape Town “Day Zero” drought was devastating for car wash businesses but a boon for borehole drillers. Day Zero may have been avoided, but there will be more droughts in the future. All of these issues can lead to stock and agriculture failures, infrastructure collapse and process interruptions. A lack of water, for example, creates cleaning and hygiene issues as well as lower staff productivity. Insurers in SA have been reporting increasing weather losses and rising catastrophe claims, which will continue to feed through to higher premiums and excesses and tougher underwriting in high-risk zones. You can only build a realistic plan once you understand exactly where your exposures lie.          

Build a climate profile for your business       
Once you understand the risk categories, create a profile detailing how they intersect with your company. You need to consider your location, your sector, your suppliers and your employees. A warehouse on a floodplain carries different risks from a retail store in a heat-stressed city. Manufacturing firms may depend on inputs that are vulnerable to drought or fire, and employees may struggle in adverse weather conditions. Many exposures sit within the supply chain, where a small disruption upstream can ripple through global markets. For example, higher than usual temperatures may result in crops failing, or greater costs for HVAC and cold logistics services. Have you factored in these costs being passed on to your business? This profile should be updated regularly, as conditions, regulations, and technologies evolve and more is learnt about the severity of future weather patterns.

Segment your strategy
Not every part of your business will need the same response. While operations may require investments in resilient infrastructure or more efficient energy use, supply chains might need diversification or tighter contracts with suppliers to ensure continuity. Products and services may need to change as customers shift their preferences toward sustainable options. Segmenting your approach enables you to focus on the areas that matter most.

Use data to drive decisions    
Climate planning is most effective when it’s based on evidence rather than assumptions. It is vital that any planning you do is based on the data from climate models, insurance assessments, and financial analyses. Tracking information like rising temperatures, energy costs, and new compliance regulations will turn climate risk from an abstract concern into a measurable factor in your strategy. In South Africa, municipal climate plans are being adjusted to redraw floodplain rules and heat-safety requirements. Is your business going to even be compliant when they come in?

Talk to your stakeholders           
Your customers, employees, suppliers, and investors are able to offer different perspectives that could keep you ahead of any climate disasters. Customers can tell you what matters most in their purchasing decisions, employees may note practical changes to streamline daily operations and suppliers can share concerns that could highlight problems you had not foreseen. Talking to all of your stakeholders is more important than it’s ever been.

Many founders believe that sacrificing their own salary is a noble way to keep the lights on. In the early days, it can feel like a badge of honour: every cent goes back into the business, while you personally make do with less. Noble it may appear, but research suggests this approach often creates more problems than it solves.

Many founders see skipping their own salary as a noble way to fund growth. In reality, underpaying yourself often backfires. Research shows that 82% of small business failures stem from cash flow problems and unpaid founders can mask true costs, distort margins, and create hidden financial pressure – and that’s just the start of it.           

What’s the real cost of your time?
When founders refuse to take a salary, they are effectively treating their own time as free. In the scramble to conserve cash, they tell themselves they can wait to be paid until profits improve. But unpaid labour is not free. By not recognising this cost, you skew the economics of your business. Imagine you hire a manager to take over your duties. Their salary would immediately appear as a line item. By not paying yourself, you are masking a true expense. This can mislead investors, lenders, and even yourself about whether the business model is sustainable and prevent changes that need to be made. Pricing, margins, and growth targets all look healthier than they are, setting you up for shocks later. This is why savvy investors prefer to see founders compensated fairly. An unpaid or underpaid founder may seem admirable in the short term, but it raises questions about whether they and the company can endure the demands of growth.     

Burnout is real
Founders who delay setting a salary usually do so because they are waiting for a day when they feel the business has “earned it.” The problem is that this line keeps moving. There’s always another milestone, another round of investment, or another expense that feels more urgent. Meanwhile the founder is likely eroding personal savings, undermining their career advancement elsewhere and causing stress and sleepless nights in their own home.A survey by Kruze Consulting of over 200 venture-backed start-ups found that business owners who underpaid themselves for too long often burned out and quit before their companies reached key milestones. By paying yourself out, and minimising the financial risks at home, you can avoid the same fate.

Tax benefits
Not paying yourself a salary isn’t doing the company as many favours as you expect. All expenses put through the company (including salaries) reduce your company’s tax burden, meaning that the benefit you’re providing the company by not taking a salary is significantly smaller than you think.  As a general rule, it’s advised that you take 50% or less of the business’ net profits as compensation and save the rest for reinvestment, but each company is different. As your accountants, we can help you to structure the salary you pay yourself to ensure that the greatest benefit is achieved for all concerned – thereby lessening any guilt you may feel for taking a salary before the business is “ready”.

The effect on morale
One of the more surprising aspects of not paying yourself a salary is the impact it has on staff morale. Salaries are a hot topic in any business, and the founder’s salary is carefully watched by all who work there. Paying too much to the CEO or founder can lead to resentment, with staff feeling that difficulties on the floor are not shared in the board or that the effort at lower levels is not being adequately compensated. Likewise, founders who take no salary, or a significantly reduced salary, instil distrust and fear among employees who begin to suspect that the company is struggling and likely to go under. This can lead to job-security worries, lower job satisfaction, increases in absenteeism, quiet quitting and higher than normal staff turnover – all of which will impact the business’ bottom line.

Paying yourself is paying your business         
Refusing to take a salary may feel like dedication, but over time it will eat away at both you and your company. Underpaying yourself masks the true cost of operations, distorts financial planning models, breaks employee morale and increases the risk of burnout. Setting a realistic salary is not selfish, it is a structural choice that strengthens transparency, stability, and resilience. Let data guide the choice. Track your revenue, costs, and cash flow. And compare your compensation to industry benchmarks for founders at similar stages. Businesses survive when their leaders are healthy, focused, and honest about costs. By recognising your worth and paying yourself accordingly, you are not taking from the business, you are ensuring it has a solid foundation on which to grow.

The dramatic rise of SARS eFiling profile hijackings is being investigated by the Tax Ombud as a possible SARS systemic issue due to the number of complaints received from taxpayers regarding this prolific type of cybercrime. October is Cybercrimes Month, making it the perfect time to understand how your eFiling profile could be hijacked and what you need to do to stay safe from this potentially financially devastating risk.

The Tax Ombud has again warned South Africans about the concerning increase in eFiling profile hijackings, which has spurred the Office of the Tax Ombud (OTO) to launch a survey of taxpayers’ experiences and a systemic investigation into SARS. 
​
What is eFiling profile hijacking? 
eFiling profile hijacking involves cybercriminals gaining unauthorised access to taxpayers’ SARS eFiling accounts. Once inside, they change the security details and banking information, and submit fraudulent tax returns to redirect the refunds into their own accounts.  Methods such as SIM swaps and phishing are commonly employed to get access to taxpayers’ eFiling profiles. Using calls and fraudulent SARS text messages, emails and letters of demand, scammers pose as SARS officials or tax advisors, often pretending to want to assist taxpayers to get their SARS refunds.Concerns have also been raised about possible internal fraud and insider involvement at SARS and certain banks.​          

SARS systemic investigation
While SARS acknowledges the rise in eFiling profile hijackings, it emphasises that although individual profiles have been compromised, the SARS system itself has not been breached. SARS adds that additional security measures have been implemented and that it is collaborating with financial institutions and the OTO to combat the scourge of profile hijacking.

How to safeguard your eFiling profile
SARS has issued the following advice:

• Avoid sharing your eFiling login details. SARS will never request OTPs, passwords or bank details via calls, emails or text messages.
• Use strong and unique passwords and update them regularly.
• Enable two-factor authentication for an additional layer of security.
• Regularly check your eFiling profile and submitted returns for any unauthorised changes.
• Verify your bank account on eFiling before a refund is paid, even if there was no change to the banking details.
• If you suspect your profile has been hijacked, change your login credentials promptly using another device, and report it immediately to SARS and to the SAPS as an identity theft case.

Rely on the expertise of a SARS registered tax practitioner such as ourselves.

If you want to scale your business, you need to know the numbers. But many entrepreneurs still treat financial roles like interchangeable parts. “I’ve got a bookkeeper, so I’m covered,” they say. Worse still: “My accountant only helps me with my taxes”. Understanding the difference between a bookkeeper and an accountant is essential for the smooth operations of your business. Each plays a distinct role in keeping your financial house in order – and mistaking one for the other can cost you time, clarity, and opportunities to grow.

You can’t grow a business without a clear handle on your numbers. But too many business owners still confuse bookkeeping and accounting. These roles do have some overlap, but they serve different purposes. Assigning tasks to the correct person means better insights, sharper decisions, and a clearer path to growth.          

In a nutshell
A bookkeeper keeps your financial records accurate and current. They handle the day-to-day recording of transactions, issuing of invoices, reconciling of bank statements, and making sure everything lines up. Think of it as the hygiene of your business finances. If it’s not being done regularly, problems start to build up fast. Bookkeeping doesn’t involve complex analysis or forecasting – but without it, the numbers your accountant sees will likely be wrong, or missing entirely.

An accountant works further up the chain. Using the data that bookkeepers maintain, they prepare financial statements, analyse performance, give tax advice, and help shape business strategy. A good accountant doesn’t just analyse tax obligations, they help you understand your business and shape strategy for the future. That could mean spotting ways to reduce your tax bill, warning you about cash flow risks, or helping you build the case for a bank loan or investment round.

Why does this distinction matter?
With margins so tight nowadays, many people are asking their bookkeeper to perform both roles. This may seem to make sense, but it is like asking your mechanic to design your next car. When the work gets confused, important details fall through the cracks – and that confusion grows as your business does. When they’re starting out, many smaller businesses get by with only a bookkeeper. At that stage, the financial picture is usually simple: a few suppliers, a few clients, not too many moving parts. But as the numbers grow, so does the complexity. You start needing help with budgeting, forecasting, asset management, and tax structuring. That’s when your business begins to need financial insight. Hiring an accountant doesn’t mean replacing your bookkeeper. It means building a team where each role is clear, and the right questions get asked at the right time. To do that, businesses need to stop seeing the bookkeeper as a junior accountant, or the accountant as an expensive version of a data clerk.

Bound by the law
There’s also a regulatory edge. Bookkeepers aren’t usually qualified to give tax advice or submit signed-off financials. If they do, and it’s wrong, you can be held liable. Accountants, on the other hand, carry the qualifications, experience, registrations and liability cover to advise on matters that can make or break your year-end. Getting that wrong can mean more than just fines and tax penalties, it can lead to missed deductions, misreported income, or worse. 

So, how do you decide who you need?
Start by asking what you’re struggling with. If you’re drowning in paperwork, if supplier payments and invoices are slipping through the cracks, or if your reports don’t match your bank balance, that’s a bookkeeping issue. But if you don’t know how much tax you’ll owe in six months, if you’re unsure whether you can afford to hire, or if the bank asks for documents you can’t produce, you’re in need of an accountant. It’s also worth looking at timing. Bookkeeping is a weekly or even daily discipline. Accounting is more periodic – think monthly reports, quarterly planning, and annual tax returns. Many accounting firms offer bookkeeping as an add on service, but you should not allow this to blur the lines between the two roles. A well-run business usually benefits from both.

Finally, don’t fall for the idea that either role is a luxury. Clean books keep you out of trouble. Smart accounting helps you make the most of what you have. Together, they turn your financials from a source of stress into a foundation for growth.

There’s only one way to ensure you really have the last word about what happens to your assets – and that is a professionally drawn up and updated will. Read on to find out why it is so important that you have the last word. And learn how we can help you to draft a valid and tax-efficient will – or ensure your current will is up to date.

Having “the last word” is defined as having “the final decision-making power or authority in a matter.” South Africans have the right to have the last word about how their assets are disposed after their passing – but exercising this right requires a well-drawn and up-to-date will … a job that is best left to the professionals. Sadly, estimates suggest that as many as 70% of South Africans do not have a will. This means that someone else – perhaps, even, a total stranger – will get the last word on important decisions that significantly impact those who are left behind. 

If you die without leaving a valid will…

• Unhappiness and conflict among family members are common when there are no clear instructions on how to distribute your assets.
• Your belongings and assets will instead be distributed according to our laws of intestate succession. This means that you have lost your opportunity to decide who will inherit what from you. For example, your spouse may inherit a lot less than you wanted them to.  
• The Master of the High Court will appoint an executor without knowing your wishes in this regard. This takes a long time, may involve extra and unnecessary costs, and possibly leaves your family to deal with a stranger who has no insight into your family situation or your wishes. This only adds to your family’s burden in the aftermath of your death.     
• If you have minor children, the assets you leave behind will be sold and the proceeds will be held by the Guardian’s Fund until they are 18. Not only are there concerns over the Fund’s resilience to cyber threats and general administration, but its generic investment strategy is unlikely to achieve anything more than minimal capital growth. Your children’s guardians will also have to justify withdrawal requests to fund expenses (living, educational, medical etc.) – a slow and bureaucratic process.           

How to draw up a will?
While it is legally possible to draft your own will, we strongly urge you to consult us when preparing this vitally important document. Drafting your own will is fraught with danger. Not only may it be invalid, but it might result in your last wishes not being fully honoured. What’s more, there’s a strong chance of it risking estate planning and tax inefficiency. We can provide reliable advice regarding problems which may arise regarding your will. And we have the necessary knowledge and expertise to ensure that your will is valid and complies with your wishes.

The most common complaints against SARS (unsurprisingly, delayed refunds are at Number 1) are referred to as ‘systemic issues’ because they impact so many taxpayers. We don’t just apply our expertise to help you avoid known systemic issues in your routine SARS interactions. We are also ready to fast-track the resolution of systemic issue complaints through the Office of the Tax Ombud.  

In SARS jargon, a ‘systemic issue’ is the underlying cause of a complaint that affects many taxpayers. These systemic issues may have to do with the way SARS systems function, how SARS drafts and implements policies or procedures, or even how it applies or disregards legislative provisions. Over the years, collaboration between the Office of the Tax Ombud (OTO) and SARS has reduced the number of systemic issues from more than 20 to seven.

 7 systemic issues at SARS

1. Delays in payment of refunds.
2. Non-adherence to dispute resolution timeframes and rules under the Tax Administration Act (TAA).
3. Undue hardship caused to taxpayers resulting from the way the Tax Compliance System (TCS) is designed.
4. Failure to respond to requests for deferred payment arrangements within the prescribed turnaround time (21 days).
5. Failure to respond to requests for a compromise within the prescribed turnaround time (90 days).
6. Failure to respond to requests for a suspension of payment within the prescribed turnaround time (30 business days).
7. Repeat verification for reduced assessments or for cases with the same risk and supporting documentation.

How do systemic issues affect my business?
Delayed refunds – especially VAT and diesel refunds – create massive cash flow challenges for companies, inhibiting growth and increasing the risk of business failure, especially for small businesses. Similarly, the design of SARS’ Tax Compliance System has resulted in companies losing contracts or tenders, or not being paid by corporate or government clients. This is because the system may flag a company as non-compliant where payment arrangements or suspension of debt agreements are in place. The system also reflects non-compliance for immaterial transgressions – including, for example, minimal debt amounts such as R1 and outstanding returns or payments for which arrangements have been made with SARS; or even fraud committed by SARS or ex-SARS officials.

SARS’ non-adherence to dispute resolution timeframes and rules, and its delayed response to requests for payment arrangements, not only infringe on taxpayer’s rights, but also expose taxpayers to prolonged periods of ‘non-compliance’, despite their efforts to become compliant. Repeat verification cases cost time and money, adding a further unnecessary compliance burden on taxpayers. 

How we protect your interests
While these systemic issues are being addressed by SARS, and monitored by the Tax Ombud, SARS suggests that taxpayers rely on the expertise of a registered tax practitioner. As your SARS-registered tax practitioner, we protect your interests and rights as a taxpayer in the following ways:

• Careful compliance and excellent record-keeping are always the first line of defence when dealing with SARS – we help ensure that you have the correct processes in place to ensure both.
• Our team of tax experts can professionally and correctly represent your business in the event of a tax dispute with SARS.
• We understand the service levels and time frames outlined in the TAA and SARS’ Service Charter and we are experienced in using the official channels for complaints, including SARS’ Complaint Management Office.
• We easily recognise systemic issues and can help you escalate these challenges directly to the Tax Ombud – the quickest and most effective way to deal with most complaints relating to systemic issues.
• For other issues, after all avenues of recourse within SARS have been exhausted, we can assist your business to access the free and independent recourse offered by the OTO.
• We can advise your business on obtaining tax risk insurance protection against SARS tax audits and related disputes.

Many entrepreneurs assume business finance is all about pure logic. But behavioural research tells us a completely different story. Entrepreneurs often pick up gut-level rules and emotional shortcuts that, over time, can distort reality, mask cashflow problems and result in delayed decision making. These are the emotion-based decisions you should be looking out for – and avoiding.

You didn’t start your business to become a psychologist. But understanding the way emotions creep into your decisions could be the difference between plain sailing and struggling to stay afloat. Entrepreneurs are often painted as rational, profit-driven operators. In reality, money decisions are rarely made in a vacuum. Stress, fear, pride and even guilt, can all shape your thinking. The danger is, emotional decision-making doesn’t feel emotional. It feels instinctive, even responsible. But it can erode cash flow, distort pricing, or block growth, while giving you the false sense that you’re doing the right thing. The goal isn’t to ignore emotion. It’s to recognise where it’s hiding, so it doesn’t quietly sabotage your progress.

“We set prices by gut feeling”       
Pricing should be based on data, not by personal sentiment. In reality neither owners nor customers inherently “know” what a fair price is. Research on psychological pricing shows that people usually asses value by comparison, not by intuition.  When owners set prices based on how they feel instead of cost and market demand, they often undercharge. In short, emotional pricing leaves money on the table. The fix is to base prices on costs, competition, and demonstrated customer value instead of just a hunch.

“Raising prices will make customers revolt”     
Price increases make many owners nervous, but fear is often worse than reality. A report from the U.S Small Business Development Centre found that , when questioned , owners commonly say “I’m afraid I’ll lose customers if prices go up”. In practice, customer loyalty depends on quality and service, not just on getting the lowest price. Studies note that some customers might switch if you raise prices – but most (or all) will stick around if value remains high. In fact, a modest price hike often increases profit more than it costs in lost sales. Raising prices at the right time (e.g. after adding value or amid industry-wide inflation) is usually safe and can strengthen a business. 

“Our sales will meet this forecast”           
Owners tend to be optimistic about sales, but wishful thinking skews forecasts. Sales teams frequently rely on “gut” when updating projections, which breeds overconfidence. In other words, they estimate sales based on hope rather than hard signals. Behavioural finance experts call overconfidence bias “one of the most common issues in financial decision-making”. The result is frequent forecasting errors: too much inventory, staffing overruns, or cash shortfalls when sales fall short. To counter this, successful owners use data and regular feedback loops. They treat projections as hypotheses to test, not guaranteed outcomes.

“I can do the books myself”
Many business owners feel they must handle all finances alone, but that can backfire. It’s common to believe nobody knows your business “as well as you do,” and thus avoid outside help. This reluctance to delegate leaves owners overworked and stressed. Bringing in an accountant frees up time and adds expertise. Trusting trained professionals with your money management usually strengthens control (and sanity), rather than eroding it. 

 “We’ll fix financial problems later”
Procrastinating on tough money decisions is a costly mistake. Delaying the reality-checks, like overdue invoices, unpaid taxes, or necessary budget cuts, may feel easier now, but hurts later. Studies of business strategy show that postponing financial actions leads to “immediate cash flow constraints” and lost growth opportunities. For instance, skipping a pricing review or ignoring rising expenses might result in steep interest charges or a cash crunch. In short, avoiding unpleasant choices compounds risk. The smarter move is to tackle issues early: tighten budgets, renegotiate costs, or adjust plans when there’s still time to gain an advantage.

What’s the takeaway?
Businesses can often counter these emotional pitfalls by simply bringing data and perspective into their decisions. We highly recommend seeking outside input and using structured decision frameworks to ensure actions are taken based on clear reports and forecasts.

Directors who are not compliant with their legislated duties (which were amended again recently) face serious consequences, including civil liability and criminal liability that could result in fines and even prison time – or both. Find out here what director duties entail, and how we can help you to understand and comply with these increasingly onerous obligations.

The first Guideline for 2025 issued by the CIPC (Companies and Intellectual Property Commission) aimed to “sensitise directors on the consequences for non-compliance with their duties to a company.” Here’s a quick overview of these duties and what could happen if directors don’t comply.

What are the duties of directors?
A director must exercise the powers and perform the functions of a director:

• In good faith and for proper purpose
• In the best interest of the company
• Without using the position to knowingly cause harm to the company
• With the degree of care, skill and diligence that may reasonably be expected of him/her         

This means that directors should carefully understand the provisions of the Companies Act that relate to the governance of companies, including, but not limited to:

• Section 75: Directors’ personal financial interests
• Section 76: Standards of directors’ conduct
• Section 77: Liability of directors and prescribed officers
• Section 78: Indemnification and directors’ insurance
• Section 213: Breach of confidence
• Section 214: False statements, reckless conduct and non-compliance
• Section 215: Hindering administration of the Act  

Recent amendments
In the last few months, amendments to the Companies Act have introduced significant new changes that have further increased the responsibility and risk that directors shoulder. Focusing on accountability, transparency, and alignment with international governance standards, the changes include stricter fiduciary duties to prioritise company and stakeholder interests, mandatory transparency in director appointments, and new director criteria disqualifying individuals with a record of insolvency, criminal convictions, or prior misconduct from serving as directors.      

Consequences of non-compliance: Civil liability
The Companies Act emphasises that a director of a company in his/her personal capacity may incur civil liability for loss or damage incurred by the company due to the director:

• Acting on behalf of the company without the necessary authority
• Trading recklessly or under insolvent circumstances
• Being a party to an act or omission by a company calculated to defraud
• Being a party to false and misleading financial statements
• Being a party to a prospectus or written statement that contains an untrue statement
• Failing to vote against an unauthorised or inconsistent provision of the Companies Act during a meeting or decision-making process

In a recent High Court case, the court found that directors of a property fund had grossly abused their positions and engaged in reckless conduct that severely harmed the company. The judge declared these directors delinquent and ordered them to compensate the fund for losses incurred due to their actions, including the costs of forensic investigation and reputational harm. A delinquency declaration can also result in a ban from holding directorships for a specified period or even permanently, as it did for SAA’s Chairperson Duduzile Myeni. 

Consequences of non-compliance: Criminal liability
A director may be also held criminally liable in his/her personal capacity in terms of various sections of the Act for:

• Disclosing confidential information concerning the affairs of any person obtained in carrying out any function in terms of the Companies Act
• Falsification of the company’s accounting records
• Trading recklessly or under insolvent circumstances
• Providing false and misleading information
• Being party to an act or omission by a company that is calculated to defraud
• Being party to a prospectus or written statement that contains an untrue statement
• Failing to satisfy a compliance notice

Some of these contraventions may result in a fine or imprisonment for a period not exceeding 10 years (or to both a fine and imprisonment) while others carry lesser (but still nasty) penalties.         

Don’t be fooled: Insurance won’t always save you
A “Directors and Officers Liability” policy protects directors against claims arising from decisions made in their official capacity. However, breaches of fiduciary duty, dishonesty, fraud, criminal acts and wilful misconduct are common policy exclusions. 

In addition, Section 78 of the Companies Act clearly sets out the requirements of indemnification and directors’ insurance. Even so, the CIPC says that directors of companies often fail to fully appreciate the requirements of this section: there are loads of requirements to qualify for indemnification.

Networking isn’t just about showing up, shaking hands and trading a few business cards. If it’s done well, it’s a direct path to new clients, improved sales and potentially, real business growth. The value of networking lies not in how many people you meet, but in who you meet and what you do with those connections once the conversation ends. Here are our tips on how to make the most of networking.

Most entrepreneurs know they should be building a network, but not many know this should be a core business strategy. Building and maintaining the right relationships can lead to improved contracts, revenue gains and business growth, provided you know how to use them. The good news is, we aren’t asking you to go out and become a natural networker. You just need to put a few key habits in place and start treating networking as a long-term business investment. Here are six common misconceptions that, when remedied, can help turn handshakes into business growth. 

1. I go to networking events, but I never see any benefits
   This is a common complaint, but it’s seldom the event that’s at fault. Many people see no benefits because they approach networking events passively. They show up, have a few chats, hand out business cards, and hope someone follows up. That’s not networking. That’s exposure. To make events pay off, you need to arrive with a goal, and steer conversations intentionally. Then afterwards, you need to follow up promptly. This doesn’t mean that you need to sell to everyone in the room. Often it’s far better to listen to people’s needs and identify just where you might be useful. A short, personalised follow-up message, the next day could then unlock a real business opportunity.           
2. I simply don’t have time to network
   Networking doesn’t have to be a drain on your time. If you’re chatting to the right people, just one or two strategic conversations a week might be all you need. The key is to start thinking of networking as business development – everyone has time for that. If you can carve out 30 minutes a week to check in with past contacts, make introductions for others, or send a useful article to someone in your network, you’re already doing more than most. The results won’t be instant, but it all adds up.             
3. My industry doesn’t work like that
   Whether you’re in logistics, consulting, construction, or retail, your next deal could still come from a friendly introduction. The channel might differ, but the principle is the same. People do business with people they trust. That old saying, “it’s not what you know, but who you know” has never been truer. No industry is too technical or regulated for word-of-mouth not to matter.
4. I’ve already got a good network
   Knowing people isn’t enough. That network of people needs to be activated. This means that you need to make yourself visible, helpful, and memorable. Stay top-of-mind by making introductions, sharing your insights, or simply checking in without hoping to make a sale. The goal isn’t to extract value, it’s to keep yourself fresh in their minds so you’re the first person they think of when they do need something. And remember: relationships decay over time, so make sure you refresh them regularly.
5. Networking doesn’t feel authentic
   Networking should never feel like a performance. The most effective networkers aren’t slick or rehearsed. They listen more than they talk. They ask thoughtful questions. If you’re having no luck networking, it may be because you’re trying too hard to be interesting, rather than simply being interested. Shift the focus. Stop trying to pitch, and start looking for ways to be useful. Can you make an introduction? Offer advice? Share a resource? That’s where trust starts and a true network can develop.             
6. I don’t see how this makes me money 
   Networking contributes directly to revenue by opening access to people and opportunities you wouldn’t reach on your own. The referrals you get from people you have met and been valuable to, will often lead to new business.       

The bottom line
There’s no need to “become a networking expert,” but there is a need to focus on a few strategic relationships. Show up with intent. Follow up with purpose. And above all, give before you ask. The returns might not be instant, but they will come.