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„Our products are empowerment tools“

Having a bank account has become a fundamental prerequisite for having a life and participating in society around the world. In my quest for a bank account in South Africa, I met Gretchen Marais from imaliexpress – a South African Fintech – who is well aware of what her true service to society is and who get’s stuff done to get there. A few weeks ago I sat with her to listen to her story. Here is what I learned.

I met Gretchen in Paarl, at the 10th Anniversary function of the Foundation for Communities of Excellence. We hit it off immediately, talking about anything under the sun. She struck me as not only an incredibly kind person, but also someone who is wise beyond her 30-something years and equipped with a laser-focused business acumen. So I wanted to know more about the story behind this intriguing combination.

Gretchen is a business developer for imaliexpress, (a South African Fintech and part of the Finex Group of companies) that offers highly innovative products, such as a Cash Passport (a multi-currency debit card), company solutions for handling travel allowances for employees, or voucher based debit and foreign exchange services that can also be white-labelled by clients. In doing all of this, they also find banking solutions for the unbanked.

Gretchen has been working for the Finex Group founded by her father for 10 years now. Although having grown up in a business-minded family, she never saw herself going into the corporate space. Let alone the financial industry. Thus, she went to study youth work at the University of Stellenbosch, where she learned a great deal about social empowerment: “I learned a lot about how to work with people. How they are structured, the way people think. About people’s behaviours and where they come from. Why they act the way they do?”

After graduation, and in spite of herself, she joined the Finex Group, starting off in the HR department. It turned out to be the perfect place to start off for someone who’s first interest is in human beings: “I kind of found my love for HR. The recruitment line is a very special field. You learn a lot about people and the industry. About different personality types and ways of thinking, and about how to position individuals into different positions in the company depending on their personality.”

After several years in HR, she joined the Finance department of Finex, where she acquired essential knowledge but was also happy to hand over after three years, because, as she says: “It’s not a people thing.”

“Our products are empowerment tools”

With the acquisition of imaliexpress to the Group, Gretchen joined as a business developer there. A space where she is obviously thriving: “The knowledge that I have, the people skills that I learned in HR, all of this really helps me in the market. It helps me build the relationships I need to have in the sales environment and have different conversations with different personality types. The most exciting part for me about my job at the moment is being involved with our people on the ground and customers in the field. Learning how the customers operate their ways of living, how they manage their finances, how they get their finances from one country to another, and how it’s so flippant difficult for them to just receive and send money from and to their homes if they are foreigners living in South Africa.”

In doing what she is doing, Gretchen does not segment clients according to their income brackets. It does not matter to her as to whether she is speaking with a lady who’s boss refuses to pay her salary before she has a bank account, a gardener from Zimbabwe who wants to send money to his family back home, or to a “newly arrived” from Europe who needs to find her ways in becoming a member of the South African society and business community. “It doesn’t matter to me at all”, says Gretchen. “We are all the same. I don’t care where your house is situated.” All that is relevant to her is finding solutions based on what clients are really struggling with: “Our products are empowerment tools.”

Such as the Cash Passport, or a voucher based remittance system that helps under-age recipients of funds in the account owners home country to responsibly manage the funds that are sent to them (75% of the recipients of funds sent from South Africa to other African countries are children at the age of 18 or younger).

“You have to actually listen to your customer”

The ideation process that finally leads to these solutions is grounded in real life experience, i.e. fed by the information that is brought in from the field or that comes in from clients contacting the Customer Service Centre. “You have to actually listen to your customer”, says Gretchen. “They are the ones using the product daily. So they would be the ones who know it best.”

Thanks to flat hierarchies, the information gathered goes directly to the Sales Manager, who is also the Operations manager and a member of the ExCo, where final decisions are taken. As these conversations happen in weekly meetings, reactions can be very timely and close to the market.

The results of this process are products and solutions that can be explained to potential clients in three sentences. Such as when Gretchen went on a field trip, and, when looking for a bathroom, got chatting with the owner of a tiny store who asked Gretchen what she was doing. Just three sentences into that conversation, the lady wanted to have a debit card. Just as did the gardener Gretchen got into a conversation with when visiting a school. “Take the remittance app. We keep it simple”, Gretchen explains. “Because, why do you need to have all these fancy features, when you just want a simple feature to work.”

“If your mind is scattered, your decisions are”

 Keeping things simple for clients ties in with her values, which are the same in her private and her business life. Such as being respectful of people’s precious time, and contributing towards positivity in people’s lives: “If you want to make a deal with me just to feed off of people and gain something out of them, I do not want to do business with you. Because, how are we going to live long, if we eat of each other where we should actually feed one other?”

Asked about what brings her most joy apart from empowering her clients, she says: “What gives me joy in life? Definitely my family, I have two beautiful kids. And yeah, music, I absolutely love music. And I think what keeps me centred is my relationship with God. Life can throw you in different directions. So it’s important to always find your equanimity. And to know where to get that fast. Quiet time is important. As is reading and being out in nature. I think that is what keeps us alive and makes life beautiful.” According to her experience, operating from this position of equanimity has a positive influence on decision making: if your mind is scattered, your decisions are. When it’s calm and composed though, your decisions reflect that as well.

“Looking for God in everything means looking for the good in everything.”

Just like that, we effortlessly slide into a little conversation about God and the importance of faith in her private and business life. “My relationship with God has an effect on everything I do. And I think the biggest thing is discernment”, Gretchen explains. “I always pray for discernment on which deals to take, which deals not to take. I think about the Holy Spirit as a kind of best friend to have by your side. Your little voice telling you when something’s not sitting right with you and trusting in what some people call intuition. For me, intuition is based on my relationship with the Holy Spirit. It’s about meditation and quiet time. In the last analysis, it’s about understanding that everything is connected.”

According to Gretchen, looking for God in everything means being present and looking for the good in everyone and everything. It means operating from the basic assumption that people are generally good, even if individual experiences might sometimes suggest differently.

Thus, when asked what she wishes for her business and her country, it comes as no surprise that people and connection play a big role in both: “My biggest wish for my company would be that people could understand the value of what we really offer. Namely, that it is truly sustainable in the sense of it always changing, adapting towards what the people need and want. My biggest wish for this country is that we can truly start cross-trading with each other.” When Gretchen speaks about cross-trading, she means different businesses helping each other out, cooperating and also referring customers to providers that can serve them if your company cannot. It struck me that this is a very different concept from one-directional cross-selling. “Well, I wish all of that could happen”, she says in closing. “But, you know, it is already happening. Slowly but surely, everything will fall into place. If we keep looking at the good things, good things will come. For our business and for the country.”

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We need to be receptive to each other

Earlier this week, I sat down with Dr. Hamilton Pharaoh to speak about how to create creative spaces for Excellence. It turned into a stroll through his lived experience as a university lecturer, an NPO founder and Strategic Director of a rugby club. Here is how all these dots connect.

Sabine Breit (SB): Good afternoon Hamilton. Howzit? What’s keeping you busy currently?

Hamilton Pharaoh (HP) I’m good, Sabine. I’m trying not to be busy, but it sort of catches up with me. So, at the moment, obviously, I am busy at the university, where I am looking at how our health related research can become interdisciplinary, so that we can create a research platform across faculties. Basically, it is about staff and the students building the capacity to work in that way. The idea is to create an environment for everyone who is interested to come and share, which would allow students from various faculties and departments to work together and gain an understanding of how to operate collectively.

SB: So you are basically creating an environment where people feel encouraged and safe to make a contribution. Are there any factors or qualities that you find particularly important in that context?

HP: Actually, it’s very simple. All we need is to be receptive. There’s an Afrikaans word: “Ontvanklik”. We need to be receptive to each other.

SB: “Empfangsbereit” or “Aufmerksam” could be a German word.

HP:  Sounds like it. So, that’s the first thing. As a community we are still sort of divided into all kinds of clusters. You know, the guys with a Phd are the clever ones, so we can’t really teach them anything. Or it should only be certain ranks around the table. Things like this. Whatever cluster we have created, it makes all of us less receptive to the skills and the knowledge of others. In the last analysis, we are all here to learn. So, although I am a Phd holder myself, I go into these environments as a lifelong student. I have no doubt that I am going to learn from anyone I engage with.

As soon as people can feel that they are received and that what they have to share is valued, they start opening up and express their lived experience and the knowledge that they bring with them. Then things start getting easier, because there is less fear and more trust.

SB: Creating a space where people can experience their worth is also what you do with your foundation. I’ve known you for a while now, and I know that something that keeps you always busy is your foundation. What’s going on there?

HP: Yeah, look, for the foundation, we are slowly building to where we need to be regarding the grade 9 programs. Within the next months, we will hopefully start piloting that in two new schools in one of the towns at the West Coast, so that over the next 4 to 5 years, we can help learners understand what they are passionate about, what talents they have, and how they can use that to pursue a different future. You know, a school is basically a place where you are directed in one way. But within that direction, the question is, what is your direction within that as an individual. For us, this means: how do we get to ignite the fire that is inside of them and help them to navigate through this system at the same time? We know it will take a lot of work and patience, but we are excited to take on that challenge.

SB: Talking about fire, Hamilton. How is the rugby going?

HP: Laughs You know, I’ve got a very fancy position now. It’s called Director of Strategic Management. I’m still trying to figure out what that means. But it sounds really fancy. I’m quite chuffed with that, because when people ask you what you do, I can say, well, that’s my job. And then, I think, they don’t ask anything else because they are too scared to ask.

Seriously, for me, it means that I am allowed by the club to live out my passion to impact those in the club. Firstly, it’s about understanding strategically where the club wants to go. Then, it’s about creating an environment where everyone in the club starts speaking the same language. And from there, also creating a safe place where we can be authentic with each other.

I am fortunate that with all my Rugby knowledge and expertise gathered in the last 30 years, I actually now get a chance to live it out and share it. That part is absolutely incredible. Looking back at my career, I now realize that I’ve gone through all the experiences so that I can now use it in the greater scheme of where communities want to go.

In that job, I connect with the executive, i.e. the management of the club. I connect with the coaches and the development of the players. I connect with the players and the medical team, and I connect with the spectators and the entire community. So basically, with my rugby knowledge, my community building experience and my medical knowledge, I’m sitting in the middle and am connecting all of these things. Hopefully, one day we will also be able to have workshops where players and the families can come. That, to me, is exciting. Somehow, all the dots seem to connect.

SB: Between the two of us, we always speak about individual and collective communication reservoirs that come together in communication interfaces between people. It looks as if your individual reservoir has become so big that you can understand the individual reservoirs from everybody and help to create a new shared one for the club and the community as a whole. To create ever increasing circles of receptiveness, so to say.

HP: Absolutely, and it might be too simple to explain it in this way, but it’s almost like if I have 4 people together, and they use different words. Then I’m able to understand that those 4 different words mean the same thing. Then we can create a joint understanding together. It’s about clarification.

You must never forget that everyone in the club comes in with their different things. Understanding that is challenging. When we look at nutrition, for example, the food that we give someone to eat after practice might be a person’s only meal for that day. Or coming to practice might be that person’s safe space that he comes to, to get away from things. So, when we create an environment that’s full of fighting, that person doesn’t have a safe place anymore. Sometimes, people come from a difficult environment which makes it difficult to be receptive.

One must also understand that the club has different meanings for different people. Where it all comes together is the love for the club. When you boil it down to this, it’s also about making sure that people understand that using the club to pamper their ego or to gain power from it has nothing to do with love.

That’s part of the challenge and requires constant work. It also requires constant communication to avoid and clarify misunderstandings, to listen what is really needed and to make sure it happens eventually, so that people know that they have been heard.

And finally, it’s about understanding the facts and structure, because this is what you can work on. If I say to one of the players: “You are a poor player”, then how can you make that better? You’ve already been told you are poor. Or if I say: “I don’t like you” – how can you change that? But if I say “You cannot pass the ball through the lift” or “You must practice your kicking”, that’s something a player can work on.

SB: So you have a starting point for conversation?

HP: Exactly! And that just makes such a difference for everyone working within a system. Whether it’s a team, or a corporate business, it doesn’t matter. And we can see the difference that it makes. In a sense, they look at things differently now. It’s almost like they understand what they are working on. And they understand that they can ask questions, give input and ask for things to be explained again. It makes a major difference. If you don’t communicate properly with a team of rugby players, and they get the feeling that they are failing all the time, they become less confident.

Sabine Breit: If they become less confident, then ultimately the performance on the pitch will suffer, right?

HP: Absolutely!

SB: How does all of this play out on match day?

HP: When it comes to match day, preparation for this starts early. Basically after the last match. There are specific things that need to happen until the following Saturday. On match days, it’s also a well-planned structure, from when players wake up and need to prepare themselves as individuals, to when they get together as a team, to the point where they run onto the field. Each specific group has certain tasks. Like the coaches will have certain things that they build on, etc.

SB: Is there anything like a rallying cry or a message that you always send them out with?

HP: Look, I always ask them whether they are enjoying themselves. Even during practice. I say to them: “If a practice is not enjoyable, then you shouldn’t be here. Then you must tell us.” Why? Because we are also doing this – and it is actually the most important part – for the enjoyment. Even when you have a tough game, even when you might lose the game, there can be something that makes you say: “Wow! I enjoyed this. I enjoyed the struggle, the difficulty. I don’t enjoy the feeling of losing, but it builds me.”

So that when you start winning, you understand the privilege of winning. Otherwise, you become entitled and think winning is just something that happens.

Actually, I never talk about winning a game. I speak about the things that we need to do. Because if we do the things properly, if we action it, if the guys live out to their potential and talent, the outcome will be good.

SB: And how has the outcome been so far, since you have become the Strategic Master of Disaster?

HP: Yeah. I don’t know if I can brag about it. We are on a 5 game winning streak after the team had been on a 5 game losing streak. So, there might be something happening. There might be some method in my madness. Or it might be that the guys are just brilliant, and I’m only a bystander.

The most important thing for me is, though, that I am enjoying what I’m doing. Every Tuesday, when I drive down to the West Coast in the late afternoon to be at the practice, I ask myself when I get into the car: “Am I enjoying myself?” If the answer is not yes, I will not go.

(c) Sabine Breit

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The ultimate purpose – not wasting your clients‘ lifetime

It’s a Saturday morning, and I have been queueing at a supermarket checkout for a felt eternity. As have all my fellow queuers. Doing your groceries on a Saturday morning, you would expect some queueing. But this time, there was a special reason to the special length and the slow motion of the queue – there was a training session in progress. A new cashier was being shown the ropes by a seasoned hand. Both of them were doing their level best to deal with the situation, and I especially admired the patience of the supervisor and the fact that the poor trainee was not going completely bonkers. But really: a training session – on a SATURDAY MORNING…. The only thing that this achieves, is the double whammy of putting the employees under unnecessary stress and wasting the precious lifetime of clients.

When my turn eventually came, I said as much to the seasoned employee. As much as I appreciate the need for people to learn, to do this on a Saturday morning is beyond stupid. She agreed wholeheartedly, and  explained that they had mentioned this to the person giving the order, but that order stood regardless.

Now, I am really scratching my head, asking myself: Who could be so far removed from the real life of that supermarket (actually any supermarket), and still be authorized to give such orders? And/or, should the order have been given by someone close to daily business, such as the branch manager,  how could that person live in such a bubble, that he is not aware or does not care about the effects of his actions on clients and fellow employees?

And not only on the clients and the employees. Because things like these have second and third order effects. Say, a client is so annoyed by the queueing that he schlepps his annoyance on to the bakery and the butcher’s he visits next, so that the poor employees there might have to bear the brunt of the bad temper. That, again, might tarnish a part or the rest of their day, and they might be carrying these bad vibes home, where they then unfold in various ways.

Thus, a stupid order given unthinkingly by someone who is obviously unaware of the ground that order falls on, can send out ripples that tarnish and waste peoples’ lifetime. Either directly (like for the queueing shoppers) or indirectly, by tarnishing the following sequence of events with negative energy. All of this takes time and energy away that could be spent on positive endeavours, like giving good advice to clients, tending to their real needs or having a good time with your partner and/or kids when you come home.

There is a lot of talk about “purpose” in the corporate world these days. I would believe, that not wasting peoples‘ lifetime and stressing them out would be the ultimate one.

(c) Sabine Breit

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Powered by Love – What nimble companies thrive on

What makes a company a place where love rules? Where people love to work and customers love to shop. A company that sends out concentric circles of happiness and well-being and thus also finds a place in the heart of society at large? And why would this be relevant?

It is relevant because a company that is powered by the “energy of love” is a company that is highly adaptable, masters complexity with aplomb and thus stands a good chance of being around for a while. Why? Because in the presence of love and trust, all communication interfaces – i.e. the headspaces where different people meet and where complexity happens – are highly functional. As a consequence, collaboration is smooth, decision making becomes easier and more skilful, innovation can flourish and, yes, it’s also good for the bottom line. By the way: If you feel uncomfortable with the word “love” in a business context, you might just as well talk about trust, respect, tolerance, appreciation, kindness, or generosity. It’s all the same energy.

Let me tell you a little story about such a place and how it feels. In January, I spent time at a medium-sized bakery on a German island. I had met the entrepreneur on a crazy train ride. We got talking, and I took an immediate interest in his company. Because here was an entrepreneur who, a few years ago, had set out to transform his business: “You know, Sabine, I could have probably amassed several pieces of real estate and other assets in my lifetime. But what would I leave behind? Exhausted human beings. So at some point I asked myself: ‘How about, some day, I’d be looking back on a whole lot of happy people? Wouldn’t that be a legacy to be proud of?’”. I guess, it can’t get any more straightforward when it comes to “purpose statements”.

The Magic Ingredients

We eventually agreed that I would come to visit. What did I find? Well, I found an extremely well energized place. Even at 3 o’clock at night in the bakery, the buzz could be felt. Wherever I went – be it the bakery, the office or the shops – I met friendly, relaxed human beings who were pretty much self-organized. Collaboration was so effortless, that it hardly needed any verbal communication. This was particularly true in the bakery. The moves and actions were so nimble that in spite of the incredible speed with which everything happened (because boy, once the dough is ready, you got to get going) it looked like a ballet performance to me. Everything in synch. Such smoothness is achieved when people know each other well, trust their colleagues, know exactly what to do and are trusted to do it. So trust and freedom, based on a general belief in the goodness of people, are essential ingredients of the magic “love potion”.

This trust and freedom goes hand in hand with responsibility. Quality control, for example, happens everywhere – in the baking process, at the oven, in the preparation of snacks, by the delivery drivers and in the shops. Everyone takes pride in the products and makes sure that only the best bread, rolls, cakes and pastry making it to the customers. No “leaders” or managers are needed to make this happen. It happens, because people love what they do and want to make their customers happy. The fact, that most customers have been regulars forever, speaks for itself.

Respect, appreciation and generosity are other magic ingredients of a “happy people company”. This is expressed in decent salaries being paid to everyone – including apprentices and seasonal helpers. In additional benefits beyond the obvious, such as a company car that is available for all employees on the mainland (so that employees do not have to pay for car transfer on the ferry), or affordable and appealing accommodation, free bikes and free events for seasonal workers. Communal areas are airy and welcoming, and there is even a room for smokers, so that they don’t have to hang around in the cold. Also, all the teams receive a budget every year that they can spend on team activities according to their liking. They can also save it up over a couple of years, to help fund more lavish outings.

Concentric Circles of Happiness

And beyond the operational, there is the personal: such as when one new employee who moved to the island could not afford the deposit for the new flat and hardly had any furniture to speak off: Her boss did not hesitate to provide a guarantee to the landlord, and all the colleagues got together to find her some furniture.

All of this adds up to concentric circles of happiness rippling from the company – to friends and family of the employees, the wider island community and seasonal customers, who often spread these circles to the mainland in the form of bread and cake they take home at the end of their vacation. I guess, that’s the ultimate definition of Corporate Social Responsibility.

No Carrots or Sticks

The absence of things is just as meaningful as their presence. For instance, there is not much classic “leadership” and no internal competition going on.  Major changes – such as the massive reduction of the product range during covid times, repricing against the backdrop of inflation or the purchase of big machinery – can be suggested by any employee and are discussed with everyone concerned. Even when the final decision is taken by the owner, it is thoroughly informed by a wide variety of perspectives. Other decisions, such as smaller product range changes or adhoc changes to work schedules, are routinely made between team members directly. Former rankings, comparing the turnover of the different shops, were abolished. Also, there are no individual bonuses or incentives, or other carrots and sticks.

The Power to Heal Thyself

Does this mean that life is always hunky-dory on the island? No. Actually, the owner mentioned that they were having a bit of a problem with communication recently, and could I help? I was happy to, but, really, there was not much “consulting-around” to do. I analysed the situation, pointed out the “block” I found in the otherwise effective flow of communication and suggested measures to dissolve it. I have no doubt that this healthy and well-functioning organism will get back on track by itself after this “micro-invasive” intervention. Because there is no fear in the system that would stand in the way of change. One of the employees put it quite succinctly: „Here, change is not a cause for concern or anxiety. I trust, that we will always find a solution that makes sense for me as well.“

It is thus no surprise that I was myself filled with the most beautiful energy when I sat on the ferry on my way back. With a big, happy smile on my face and a good supply of yummy bread and cake in my backpack. Taking a concentric circle of happiness to the mainland.

© Sabine Breit