The health-care sector has made serious advances in empowerment recently. In this year's Top Empowerment Companies (TEC), four of the five groups fared excellently and feature in the Top 30. In 2004 only one health-care player featured in the whole Top 100.
Having garnered a total score of 67,54%, Medi-Clinic is ranked 24th, up from 33 last year. That's commendable but not enough to enable the Remgro-controlled firm to retain the sectoral leadership position. Aspen also fared well and with 65,79% it's ranked 28th. The Durban-based group excels on ownership and was one of the six firms (including HCI, Mvelaphanda and Aveng) that bagged the three bonus points in the ownership element.
But, the praise goes to Netcare, which proudly sits in the 11th position overall with a fine 75,42%, something that makes it the most empowered firm in its sector. That's no mean feat in an arena with such a black economic empowerment (BEE) stalwart as Cipla Medpro (formerly Enaleni) which previously took the sectorial honours for two years in a row.
This time round Cipla Medpro, which failed to make an appearance last year, lies fourth in the sector with a total score of 65,59% or position 29 in the overall
In sharp contrast, Netcare - under the leadership of CEO Richard Friedland - has risen like a phoenix and transformed itself from a whimper (in 2004 it was ranked 112, with a lousy 14%), to a serious player. Last year the hospital titan recorded a total score of nearly 60% (37th), having steamed ahead from a less-than-impressive 64 in 2007.
In just five years Netcare has shot up 100 places and in the process lifted its score to a commendable 75,42% in this year's TEC edition. This shows just what the combination of hard work, a good plan and the right attitude can yield.
In the words of Jerry Vilakazi, named Netcare chairman last June, empowerment is a process of "normalisation" rather than transformation.
That would explain how the group managed an enviable double: catapulting itself from level 5 to a high level 3 in broad-based BEE accreditation from the department of trade & industry and an AA rating from Empowerdex in just one year.
"Our target (for 2008) was level 4 but because everyone was pushing hard we ended up achieving level 3. It was definitely a nice surprise," says Netcare director Victor Litlhakanyane, who also oversees the company's transformation strategy.
The human resources side, however, remains somewhat complex due to the high attrition of the nursing workforce.
But staff shortages have become one of those perennial problems that will eventually - unless private and public industry players do something radical - fall off the agenda. And, should that happen, people on the lower rungs of society will continue carrying the burden.
However, small entrepreneurs have something exciting to look forward to this year. For one, Netcare, according to Litlhakanyane, will focus on the small- and medium-sized enterprises sector as part of its broad-based empowerment plan. "This is the sector where economic activity is taking place."
