Weighing Up The Benefits Of B-BBEE And Learnerships

A rethink of how companies approach B-BBEE is needed given sluggish targets of late. Failure to meet these targets can be attributed to one thing, and one thing alone: cost. Yet, the true value of B-BBEE and empowerment is its ability to positively change people’s lives and driving skills development is one of the best drivers to do this.

This is according to Prudence Mathebula, co-founder and managing director of Dynamic DNA, a 51% black female-owned, B-BBEE level two accredited QSE training and skills development provider. 

All the elements on the B-BBEE scorecard require some financial investment from companies, many of whom are feeling the financial pinch from declining sales and revenue since the pandemic began. Investment in B-BBEE and transformation is unlikely to be top of their lists and understandably so.

"Over the last few months, we have seen several businesses choose not to support learning initiatives which specifically drive investment in learnerships and scarce IT and business skills,” explains Mathebula.

It is not just because they don’t want to foot the bill financially, but also because investments in learnerships, accredited training means employees need to spend time away from work being trained.

Mathebula says they are finding that most companies are simply unaware of the support structures available to them when accessing funding opportunities. This can not only help mitigate the costs of learning interventions, but also help reach skills development targets and get enterprise and supplier development points on their scorecard. 

“It is a win, win for everyone but choosing to ignore the opportunities B-BBEE brings in harnessing growth will do nothing but stifle business growth and put South Africa on a negative growth path,” she says  

Here are 6 ways companies can improve their BEE scorecard and benefit:

1. Understand the value of continuously and successfully achieving the B-BBEE skills element of your scorecard requirements.
   • Realising the value of a skilled workforce and adopting it as a concrete change management strategy to craft a future talent pool of skilled labour, results in uninterrupted, transparent, and evolving skills transformation for employees and enhancement of innovation, sustainability, and diversity – each one a true component of empowerment. 
2. Do a full proof gap analysis and investment evaluation of your current business operations and skills needs. This will ensure that you achieve each of your B-BBEE business goals in an affordable and effective manner. Make sure to connect the indicators to people.
   • An employee that is continuously developing his or her skillset and growing personally and professionally does not only benefit, business owners and the wider economy also do, and this is a full proof model for success if executed effectively.
3. Investigate the support structures that are in place for skills development such as SETA grant funding for learnerships, bursaries, skills development programmes and internships that will bolster your B-BBEE points and address skills deficits within your business.
   • Use online learning platforms to mitigate the risks of employees taking time off work.
4. Select a trusted strategic partner who can manage the skills development process for you end-to-end, from SETA grant applications, recruiting, contracting, training, project management to workplace simulations, assessment moderation, SETA reporting, and learner employment.
5. Besides skills development, enterprise and supplier development targets create further employment opportunities and can also fuel a new breed of much needed entrepreneurs who possess the essential skills needed to help grow our economy even further.
   • Also, by using a supplier that is B-BBEE accredited, and a QSE training and skills development provider, like Dynamic DNA, you bolster your enterprise and supplier development points. 
6. As a business leader, you want to ensure that you implement, manage, and oversee the full execution of your B-BBEE strategy at all levels of investment.
   • Make sure you do not allow for overpromises and poor deliverables from service providers and partners assisting with this process as this will negatively impact the successful outcome of your transformation outputs.

Dynamic DNA is a 51% Black Female-owned, a B-BBEE Level 2 accredited QSE training and skills development provider who through SETA funding and strategic partnership with corporate and private investment in learnerships creates a better future for young people, communities, businesses, and the country. 

The Learnership programme was developed in South Africa as a modern way to advance apprenticeships to meet the modern demands of the workplace. Learnerships also manage to formalise the learning and workplace experience - which is usually sadly lacking in internships offered by companies.

Another significant benefit of Learnerships over internships is that Learnerships come with a formal pay structure where learners will be paid a monthly stipend, or payment, for the time they are on the Learnership. Also, internships do not have a learning component, while Learnerships are all linked directly to a formal qualification.