-
New General Manager for Shopper's Friend
Monday, 16 January 2012Werner Lindeque has been appointed as the new General Manager of Shopper’s Friend. He began his career in 1996 as a junior graphic designer, and quickly progressed as a result of his exceptional leadership qualities, effective management style, high standards of work quality and ethics, fanatical attention to detail, as well as his willingness to learn. These remains evident throughout his career to date, and are an integral part of who he is today. His track record clearly displays that he has acquired all the necessary skills, knowledge and experience to be an exceptional asset to any company for which he works.
Werner has worked as Publisher for Wilbury and Claymore, a publishing company which was acquired by Media24 Magazines during the course of the previous year.
In this role, he was responsible for the publishing and managing of various B2B market leading publications, such as Medical Chronicle, PedMed & Adolescent Medicine, Healthcare Review, Laboratory Marketing Spectrum, Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, What’s New Doc. He also secured Custom Publishing contracts such as Netcare Magazine and Medi-Clinic Diaries. Prior to joining Wilbury and Claymore in 2006, he was the Group Brand and Visual Communications Manager of Netcare.
We wish Werner best of luck in his new position.
Full story...
In news category: Paarl Media News -
Paarl Media and Primedia astounded at Competition Commission ruling
Thursday, 08 December 2011Paarl Media and Primedia are astounded by the decision by the Competition Commission yesterday (6 December 2011) to reverse the unconditional approval it gave in January 2011 regarding the acquisition by Paarl Media of Primedia@Home.
“Our legal teams are studying the decision, but the likelihood is that we will refer the matter to the Competition Tribunal to reconsider the Commission's decision,” said Stephen van der Walt, CEO of Paarl Media and Geraint Crwys-Williams, Group Commercial & Legal Executive at Primedia.
In a joint statement the representatives of the respective companies said: “When the Competition Commission completely reverses its own decision on the same set of facts, the resulting commercial anarchy bodes ill for economic growth and jobs in future. Any attempt to undo the merger will mean the loss of over a thousand jobs. With this inexplicable reversal the reputation of the Competition Commission suffers a grievous blow.”
The companies said the Competition Commission has now prohibited a merger which has already been fully implemented, with the knowledge and approval of the Competition Tribunal. As the Tribunal recognised in its ruling in July 2011, Paarl Media was legally entitled to integrate Primedia@Home into its Shoppers Friend operation after voluntarily notifying the transaction to the Commission and receiving unconditional approval from the Commission in January this year.
Paarl Media and Primedia do not believe it is practically possible to reverse a merger process which has been completed, and even if a reversal were possible, Primedia has no intention of resuscitating the Primedia@Home operation.
“We have already implemented the merger, and the considerable investments we have made have been a success. How does the Commission expect us to undo this, and who will compensate the affected employees for the loss of their jobs and us for the expense we have incurred legally, and with the endorsement of the Competition Tribunal, after the Commission gave us unconditional approval? ” asked Van der Walt.
“In our view the Commission’s decision is incapable of being implemented – you cannot unscramble an omelette.
“This illogical and incomprehensible ruling is going to make business question the validity of every decision the Competition Commission has made in the past as well as the permanence of decisions made in the future. In the space of 10 months the Commission has delivered completely opposite decisions on the same facts.
“The Commission's decision will cost more than 1 000 jobs if it is implemented. It is a waste of resources, it is bad for business and it does great damage to the public good.
“This transaction was below the financial thresholds where notification was required. We did so voluntarily because it was good corporate governance. The way the matter has been handledis likely to make other companies do everything they can to avoid South Africa's competition procedures.
“It will be up to the Competition Tribunal to restore confidence in our competition authorities.”
Van der Walt assures staff and clients that it would be “business as usual” at Shoppers Friend while the legal process continued.
Crwys-Williams confirmed potential job losses if the merger was reversed.
“We will close Primedia@Home if it is handed back to us. This means the loss of between 1 200 and 1 400 jobs.
“The only other potential buyer for the operation is Caxton, who objected to this merger. If Caxton bought Primedia@Home, significant competition issues would come up. It’s a non-starter,” he said.
Media enquires please contact:
Full story...
Warrick Lace
011 504 4000
083 452 6278
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
In news category: Paarl Media News
Paarl Media News
Launch of the Paarl Media Academy of Print Friday, 18 May 2012
Released by:
Louise Ehret
Paarl Media Marketing
Tel +27 21 550 6233
www.paarlmedia.co.za
The new Paarl Media Academy of Print is set to raise the benchmark in print training, strengthening the skills level in the industry in the years to come. An official launch function was held on 30 March 2011 at the dynamic training facilities in Paarl, with guests invited including the Acting Director General of Higher Education and Training, Gwebinkundla Qonde, as well as staff, suppliers, clients, media and representatives from the London City & Guilds and MAPPP SETA.
In his address, the Acting Director General personally applauded Paarl Media for taking the initiative to establish a media academy to train students in the printing sector, and declared the Department’s support of the Group’s vision for shared learning, cross skilling and constant assessment based on specific set standards to ensure critical skills transfer and highly effective employees. “Paarl Media has heeded the government’s call for partnerships with industry to avail its capacity for developing the skills of our people,” he said. “Skills development is central to job creation and decent work as articulated by the President in his State of the Nation address,” he added. “It is also about empowerment for meaningful participation in society, for knowledge, for technological advancement and for innovation.
The Academy was initiated in 2008, when Paarl Media faced a challenge with the quality of training provided to their apprentices. The existing curriculum for apprentices in the printing industry dated back to the 90’s when PIFSA took a leading role to convert time-based apprenticeships into competency-based apprenticeships. However, with all the advancements in technology within the trade, training material used in the theoretical portion of the apprenticeship was outdated and often not applicable.
Following extensive research regarding methodology and curriculum followed in America and Europe in the training of printing apprentices, Paarl Media embarked on a process to develop a new training curriculum for seven printing related apprenticeships, namely Rotary Web Offset Heatset, Coldset, Rotogravure, Roll Label, Gravure Cylinder Preparation and Mechanised Bookbinding. Once the training curriculum was developed and aligned with the Qualification Curriculum registered with SAQA, the project team began developing trade training material for the mentioned trades; this training material was completed in January 2010.
During the course of 2010, Paarl Media further embarked on a capacity building intervention, identifying senior artisans employed within Paarl Media, to undergo accredited training as training facilitators, coaches, mentors, assessors and moderators. The training facilitators also assisted with the development of facilitator guides, with embedded video clips and other relevant lecturing aids which will be used in the lecturing of apprentices. These role players will be involved with the training of apprentices, once they have completed their foundational training modules at the Paarl Media Academy, when they are transferred to the various business units, where they will undergo their core and elective modules’, practical and experiential training. The first intake of 45 apprentices started with their formal training on 1 February 2011.
In addition to its newly developed apprenticeship programme, the Academy will facilitate the offering of technical, soft skills and leadership courses throughout the Group. It is a centre of excellence, driving the personal development and performance of each individual through a highly sophisticated learning management system, Cornerstone on Demand. This system will be used to manage, co-ordinate and report on the training of all employees and apprentices within the Paarl Media Group.
Furthermore, based on needs identified, additional training curricula are currently being developed including Estimating, Production Planning and print specific mechanical and electrical training. A Design for Print workshop has also been completed to empower clients’ designers and print production staff to fully understand the implications of their design selections in print so as to get optimal end results.
The Academy, which is an Institute of Sectoral and Occupational Excellence (ISOE), is an accredited training provider with MAPPP / FPM SETA, as well as having received formal accreditation by City & Guilds, the UK's leading vocational awarding body.
Mr Qonde expressed his hope to be invited back to the Academy to recognize the success stories of the future graduates and wished all the students a very fulfilling future. He closed with the best wishes from the Minister of Higher Education and Training that the Paarl Media Academy of Print may go from strength to strength.
Louise Ehret
Paarl Media Marketing
Tel +27 21 550 6233
E-mail
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
