CV Michael J Olivier

 

Education

• Matriculated: Potchefstroom Boys High School – 1959 - distinction in Mathematics
• B.Sc. (University of Cape Town): 1962 - majors in Physics and Applied Mathematics.
• B.Sc. Honours (University of the Witwatersrand): 1965 - Physics
• M.Sc. (University of the Witwatersrand): 1967 - Nuclear Physics
• MBA (Stanford University Graduate School of Business in California): 1967 to 1969 with majors in Marketing and Operations Research.

Experience

22 years in the computer industry:

• NCR (1969 – 1977)
• International Marketing at NCR Corporation in Dayton, Ohio, USA (2 years)
• Divisional Manager of Corporate Planning (2 years), NCR Johannesburg
• Special assignments in London and Luanda
• Divisional Manager, Systems Services Division – Africa Region (4 years)
• Managing Director of Protea Computers (part of the Protea Holdings Group) (3 years)
• Director Marketing, Sales and Strategic Planning for Central Data Systems Limited (8 years).
• During the period at Central Data Systems, in addition to managing the national sales organisation, I led numerous marketing and communications campaigns, directed the successful launch of new computer ranges and led the process that took Central Data Systems to a public listing on the JSE in 1988.

1989 Founder shareholder in consulting and software business, Strategy Computer Holdings. Sold my shares early in 1992.

13 Years in Remuneration, Human Resources and Strategy Consulting

Consulted independently for two years focusing on scenario planning (projects with the Business Futures Group – IBM Consulting Division 1992/1993) and organisational and HR strategy. This period included a 12 month interim management assignment as General Manager of IRT (Pty) Ltd, an electronics and smart card fare collection system design and manufacturing company.

September 1993 - Invited by the Renwick Group to set up a remuneration consulting business. Built Sibson & Company into the leading specialist remuneration strategy consulting firm in the country.

September 1999: Instrumental in forming Deloitte & Touche Human Capital Corporation (Pty) Ltd (HCC) through merging Sibson & Company with the Executive Placements recruitment division of Deloitte & Touche. Appointed CEO of HCC in March 2000. Between March 2000 and May 2002, led growth of HCC from R25 million to R146 million in revenue.

Since August 2002: Working as an independent consultant in organisation effectiveness, human resources and remuneration.

Founded Synchrona Leadership Strategies (Pty) Ltd in 2003 as the operating entity for providing Leadership Strategy consulting, top level Executive Remuneration and Director Assessment and balanced scorecard strategy execution assistance.

Consulting Areas

• Scenario Planning & Modelling
• Strategy Development
• Executive Coaching & Leadership Strategies
• HR Strategy: design and implementation
• Strategy Execution: Balanced Scorecard
• Executive Remuneration & Governance
• Organisation Design & Effectiveness
• Advice to Remuneration Committees
• Technology Strategy
• Reward System & Incentive Design
• Competency & Output-based Performance Management
• Sales Force Effectiveness
• Value-based Management Human Resource Information Systems

Experience Outside Business

Political and community involvement and experience. 1988 - 1991 I was the elected Chairman of the Five Freedoms Forum, an extra-parliamentary political and human rights organisation in South Africa that was established to support the anti-apartheid political activities of a range of some 25 human rights organisations (including the Black Sash, Lawyers for Human Rights, the Detainees Parents Support Committee and others).

During this time I worked extensively with NGOs and the diplomatic representatives of Sweden, Switzerland, Germany and Canada to organise funding for human rights organisations in South Africa.

I led (and played a major role in organising) a delegation of 115 people from the white community (business, church, academic, media and professional leaders) that met with the ANC in Lusaka for a four day conference in July 1989. Met with the ANC in Paris in December 1989 as an invited delegate to the Idasa/Mitterand Foundation conference of business leaders and senior ANC leadership.

I co-authored the “SA Political Environment Survey” in 1990 with Frederik van Zyl Slabbert and in 1993 was a major contributor to the “SA Economic Landscape Study” (published by Integrated Marketing Research).

Examples of Current Client Involvement: Executive and Board Level

Advisor to the Boards, Executive Committees or Chairmen of the following companies on Executive Remuneration and related governance issues:

Nedcor: advisor to the Group Remuneration Committee of the Board

Murray & Roberts: advisor to the Group Remuneration Committee

VenFinLtd – reward systems redesign (includes pay benchmarking)

Inala Technology Investments – HR & remuneration systems (includes pay benchmarking)

PsiTek – reward system redesign, long term strategy (includes pay benchmarking)

SARS – Chair of Remuneration Committee, Member of Human Resource Committee (includes technical advice on pay benchmarking, performance management and executive remuneration)

Discovery Health – Member of External Remuneration Committee, Advisor to Internal Remuneration Committee (includes pay benchmarking).

Savannah Resources (Pty) Ltd and LA Crushers (Pty) Ltd – Executive Remuneration and Balanced Scorecard Performance Management and Incentive Design

Examples of Previous Client Experience (Thgrough 2003):

• Vodacom: advisor to the Remuneration Committee of the Board – One year contract (2002/2003)
• Woolworths
• ISCOR – primary advisor in establishment of ISCOR’s “Total Rewards” programme
• McCarthy Motor Holdings
• Imperial Bank
• Johnnic – incentives, share schemes
• Times Media Limited
• MCELL, MTN – Advice to Board and Human Resources Committee on CEO and Executive Pay, Contracts, Share Schemes (1998 – 2000)
• GoldFields
• De Beers – Executive pay levels, succession planning
• HSBC – South African executive pay
• Servest - Executive remuneration for South Africa, UK, Australia
• Fulcrum (Pty) Ltd.
• Advised CEO of Transnet on long term incentives at Executive Director level
• Advised ESKOM on Executive remuneration and long term incentive design
• Advised Cyril Ramaphosa, Chairman of Johnnic Limited, on the design and quantum of the total remuneration package to be offered to a new CEO for Johnnic
• Advised Gerhard van Niekerk (then Managing Director of Old Mutual) on the valuation of share options for the Directors of CG Smith at the time of that organisation’s unbundling

Examples of Clients for whom Value-based Management and Balanced Scorecard Techniques as inputs to Corporate Strategy, Executive Incentive Remuneration and Performance Management Systems have been used under my guidance as project manager, designer or client manager:

• Scenario planning for Spoornet (1992)
• Scenario Planning for IBM South Africa (1992)
• ISCOR – Executive Incentive Design
• ESKOM – Incentive Designs
• TRANSNET – Long term Incentive design for Executive Directors
• Johnnic
• Forward Corporation
• Nedcor
• Henred-Freuehauf
• Edgars
• Imperial Bank
• Fedics & Tsebo Group
• Psitek

Examples of Other Consulting and Course Development:

• Developed and implemented Organisational and HR Strategy training programme for NAC.
• Developed a Remuneration Training Programme for the Micro-Finance SETA
• Developed a Remuneration Training Course for Marcus Evans
• Developed an Assessment and Performance Management Programme for non-executive directors.
• Institute of Directors – Short course on Assessment and Rewarding of Directors
• Institute of Marketing Management: Course on Sales Management Effectiveness and Rewards (1997)

Conferences Addressed

• Five Freedoms Forum National Conferences: 1988, 1999
• Lusaka Conference between ANC Leadership and 115 White Delegates from SA (July 1989)
• Black Consumer Conference: 1992, 1993
• IPM Conference: 2001
• Various conferences on Reward Strategy, HR Strategy, HR Best Practice, Value-based Management and Strategy Execution
• SASLAW Annual Conference: 2002
• SA Economic Landscape Conference 2000
• Conducted Marcus Evans course on Incentive & Salary Structuring (2003)

Articles

• Numerous published in The Star, Sunday Times, Business Day, Accountancy SA.