Petzer, Du Toit & Ramulifho

From left to right:Nigel Petzer, Una du Toit, Zandi Mabaso, Karien Schoeman and Lesley Ramulifho

In this newsletter we have decided not to deal with any heavy legal issues, but rather to take time out to reflect on our first year in business and the challenges that lie ahead for any business, young or old.

The first year of operation has passed for Petzer, Du Toit and Ramilifho. It has been a year that has been filled with challenges, growth and development for all the partners and our staff. We have been fortunate and blessed to have gained some loyal and regular clients, in the conveyancing, litigation, commericial and cyberlaw fields of practise.

Lesley Ramulifho was admitted as an attorney on 20 June 2005 and became a full equity partner of our firm on 1 July 2005. Through persistence and continuous marketing efforts, Lesley has ensured that we have been appointed as a service provider to a Government Department for a specific large project. Una Du Toit passed her conveyancing exams and was admitted as a conveyancer. This exam is extremely difficult and Una passed with flying colours. We are very proud of Una’s achievement. We have employed Karien Schoeman as a conveyancing secretary to assist Una and the other partners and she has fitted in very well with the values and vision of our firm. Zandi our dedicated and trusted receptionist and secretary will be on maternity leave for a few months, we wish her well. We are also looking forward to having her back with us once her new born baby has settled into a routine and allows her to come back to work.

We were tempted to increase our office space recently when additional offices in our building became available. Tempting as it was, sanity prevailed and we agreed to rather contain our expenses and consolidate and strengthen our position, before falling into the trap like many businesses of growing too big too quickly.

We are looking forward to our next year of operation with enthusiasm and commitment to providing a personal service which exceeds the expectations of our clients.
SO WHAT MAKES A WINNING TEAM?

Jack Welch, in his well known book “WINNING”, believes that if you want to win the game you must have the best team on the field. To keep your business at the forefront of its sector against stiff competition means that you need to surround yourself with a team of winners.

It is critical that you employ the right person, specifically in the South African market where our labour laws are so stringent and firing an employee is not that easy.

Hiring right requires expertise and care. You need to define the vacancy first. In certain respects, job seekers enjoy the same protection by our labour laws in the same way as employees do. It follows that you need to be careful on how you conduct job interviews.

Demonstrate leadership

Modern day leadership skills are all about aligning members of your team to your organisations goals without exercising raw power. This requires a set of skills including charisma, cultural awareness and ethical behaviour.

Motivate your team

Although financial incentives play an important role in motivation, they are not the end all and be all. Allocating responsibility, showing trust and providing recognition can be equally effective. Another effective motivational tool which is often overlooked is delegation. Keeping members of your team informed of developments within the business is another excellent way of motivating them.

Some people have better ideas than others; some are smarter or more experienced or more creative. But everyone should be heard and respected.

Jack Welch, WINNING, HarperCollins Publishers, 2005

Perform evaluations

You have the power to build your team’s confidence by giving them positive feedback. Rather than catching people doing things wrong, good leaders catch people doing things right and heap lavish praise on them.

Reward your team

A sure-fire way of attracting top achievers onto your team is to offer them performance related pay. Your key people should have a realistic chance to earn a bonus based on performance and with no upward limit. This effectively shifts the risk to your people. If they perform well, your business will do well, profits will soar and everyone wins. Demonstrate to your team that you care about them just as much as you expect them to care about your business. Recognise achievements and celebrate success.