Topco Media and the Standard Bank Top Women Awards will be hosting some of the highest esteemed figures and companies in South African society on 18 August 2016 at Emperor’s Palace, Johannesburg. This event will celebrate and recognise female leaders in business that will form a part of the 13–year legacy that is the Top Women Awards.

Individuals and companies that promote the agenda of diversity in the workplace are celebrated as the trailblazers of the South African vision of empowerment. The Standard Bank Top Women Awards is proud to host leaders in business, including Denel, ACSA, Schneider Electric, Clinix, Continental Tyres, Kabu Design Architects, Mzanzi and Dimension Data; and honourable guests, including the Deputy Minister of Social Development, the Hon. Hendrietta Ipeleng Bogopane-Zulu and the Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, Hon. Fatima Ismail Chohan.

In South Africa there are still several challenges that obstruct women from fully partaking in the market. Janine Hicks, a commissioner at the Commission for Gender Equality stated that, “In South Africa women represent just 29% of executive managers, 22% of directors of companies, 9% of chairs of boards and a mere 2.4% of chief executives. Under the employment equity legislation, companies are required to conduct an audit to assess what internal policies can be put in place to lower barriers that women face.”

Diversity in the workplace has been proven to drive businesses forward, especially where gender empowerment is concerned. On a level of management for instance, Harvard Business Review reported that women are more effective in these roles, from top management, down to individual contributors in a company. Diversifying has a large impact on companies; in fact, companies who have empowered women have experienced a surge of clients and an increase in profitability.

Women have often faced unique sets of challenges when entering the market as entrepreneurs, including the lack of access to traditional networks such as education, financing and experience; it is thus important to award and celebrate women who have emerged as business leaders in South Africa.
The Top Woman Awards will be awarding woman in the following categories among others:
Top Woman in Oil and Gas, Top Woman Award in Aviation, Diversity in the Workplace Award, Health & Pharmaceuticals Award, Top Woman in Agriculture as well as Top Business Woman of the Year Awards.

The selection process of this year’s awards will be judged by the CEO of BUSA, Khanyisile Kweyama; the Franchise Director of Discovery, Kate Moodley; the Prestige Director at Pernod-Ricard SA, Vika Shipalana to name a few.

For more information about the Standard Bank Top Women Awards, bookings, the accompanying publication, or how you can be involved in this exciting initiative, please contact Angelique Edwards at angelique.edwards@topco.co.za.

You can visit the website here for more details.