Bowman Gilfillan is involved in a continuous transformation process and in 2004 adapted a Transformation Charter.  The Transformation Charter was revised and revisited in 2008 with recommendations for the next 3 years.

MISSION

To be the leading provider of legal services in South Africa and for Africa

VALUES

Bowman Gilfillan is committed to:

• Uncompromising professionalism
• Empowering our people to reach their full potential
• Encouraging and promoting diversity in the way we do business
• Recognising and rewarding innovation and excellence
• Rejecting all forms of discrimination
• Embracing the values underlying the Constitution
• Understanding and responding to our clients’ businesses and needs
• Maintaining long-term relationships with our clients
• Cultivating an open and transparent culture
• Accepting and addressing the need for transformation in our firm and our society
• Serving the interests of the broader community

CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

Bowman Gilfillan wants to be at the forefront of real change in South Africa.

The firm started its transformation journey some years back but now urgently wants to accelerate the process.

For a true metamorphosis to occur, the firm must have bold transformation goals and courageous objectives. It also needs to have practical and measurable action plans to realise its ambitions.

This Charter maps our path through the challenges of the changing South Africa and I am proud to commit Bowman Gilfillan to it.

Jonathan Schlosberg

WHY DOES BOWMAN GILFILLAN WANT TO TRANSFORM?

• As a leading provider of legal services in Africa, we recognise that the environment and the local and global market in which we operate, and the factors that influence the demand for our services, are in a state of continual change;
• We must be responsive to change and continually seek proactively to embrace challenges and improve ourselves;
• We acknowledge a need to take decisive steps to move beyond the legacy of systemic race discrimination and other forms of discrimination in society that impact on the structure, culture and composition of our firm;
• We are committed to harnessing and nurturing the value and strength of diversity and to eliminate all forms of discrimination;
• We must seek to attract, develop and retain the best people and empower them to reach their full potential.
• We want to place special emphasis on the empowerment of black people, women and the disabled;
• We must retain and develop a diverse client base, listen to and be responsive to its needs;
• We want to grow, to improve productivity, profitability and long term sustainability and to create more jobs;
• We wish to have and maintain a common set of values which are characterised by openness and transparency, and a culture to which all our people contribute and subscribe;
• We think it is right to direct more resources into areas of social responsibility for the benefit of the broader community;
• We seek to meet the challenges introduced by new legislation;
• We aim to lead and set an example for the legal profession and our society as a whole. Above all, we must transform because we think it is the right and just thing to do.

CREATING THE CHARTER

Bowman Gilfillan believes that the end goals of transformation should be reflected in the means used to reach those goals.

This Charter was therefore formulated in a consultative and participative way.

A forty four member elected focus group which represented all races, genders, levels and regions of the firm was convened.

It participated in a lengthy and detailed environmental scan during which the group was exposed to detailed readings on transformation and to twenty four presentations by experts, clients and alumni. The firm also commissioned detailed cultural, client, and employee transformation surveys.

The focus group then went away together for six days when, with the help of three expert facilitators, it:

• Explored why there was a need to transform;
• Critically examined the firm in the changing South African environment;
• Suggested transformation goals and objectives;
• Recommended action plans and a process for monitoring transformation.

The focus group’s ideas were captured in the “Indaba Minute” and were presented to the directors of the firm over two days.

This Charter was then adopted by the directors.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

In order to realise its mission and to be true to its values, Bowman Gilfillan has set itself the following transformation goals and objectives:

GOAL 1 – HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

To redress inequalities with regard to race, gender, disability and culture among the firm’s employees as soon as practically possible, and to accelerate the development and retention of a diverse pool of skilled employees in the firm in order to achieve equitable representation in all occupational categories and levels of employment.

OBJECTIVES

1.1 To establish or revise, implement and measure fair and effective policies and best practice for:

• Recruitment and selection
• Hiring
• Remuneration and reward
• Performance management
• Promotion
• Training and development
• Retention
• Career-pathing
• Support and counselling
• Behaviours and conduct
• Unfair discrimination
• Working parents

1.2 To assign a director to champion these human resource development objectives;

1.3 To employ appropriately skilled and experienced expertise in human resource development in order to ensure the implementation of these goals and objectives;

1.4 To ensure that the staff complement in the human resource department is diverse.

1.5 To ensure that the human resource department is appropriately structured, managed, staffed and resourced;

1.6 To empower and authorise employees to perform their work;

1.7 To build the confidence of employees;

1.8 To recognise the critical role played by support staff and to focus particular attention on their needs and concerns;

1.9 To develop and apply measurable human resource development targets and criteria, and to evaluate and monitor progress;

1.10 To link contribution to human resource development to performance management;

1.11 To communicate effectively about progress in human resource development both internally and externally;

1.12 To make the firm the employer of choice in the legal profession;

1.13 To develop and retain the best staff by establishing an environment that encourages staff to remain in the firm;

1.14 To ensure that recruitment panels are diverse and include black and female persons;

1.15 To ensure that all new employees undergo appropriate induction;

1.16 To establish a properly structured, nationally co-ordinated training function in the firm;

1.17 To undertake a training needs analysis throughout the organisation at all levels;

1.18 To link training to performance assessment and management;

1.19 To continue with existing training and, subject to the training needs analysis, extend it to:

• Diversity
• Management
• Mentoring and coaching
• Leadership

1.20 To comply with broad-based black economic empowerment and equity legislation and charters.

GOAL 2 – DIVERSITY

To value all people who make up the diverse South African population and to accelerate and cultivate an environment in the firm where diversity prospers.

OBJECTIVES

2.1 To redress inequalities with regard to race, gender, disability and culture in the firm’s employee base and to accelerate this process;

2.2 To formulate fair diversity policies and practices;

2.3 To make diversity an integrated, ongoing and measurable strategy;

2.4 To consider representation, in accordance with the demographics of the firm, in the composition of firm committees and management wherever this is appropriate;

2.5 To make all departments, teams and managers accountable for diversity;

2.6 To provide diversity training for all people at all levels in the firm;

2.7 To link diversity to recruitment, development and retention strategies;

2.8 To develop and apply measurable diversity targets and criteria, and to evaluate and monitor progress;

2.9 To link contribution to diversity to performance management;

2.10 To communicate effectively about progress in diversity both internally and externally;

2.11 To establish or review, implement and measure codes of conduct on:

• Sexism
• Racism
• Cultural intolerance
• Religion
• Disability

2.12 To ensure skills enhancement in the fields of language, writing and drafting;

2.13 To introduce a social integration and interaction programme between groups and levels in the firm;

2.14 To conduct regular cultural surveys which measure and monitor diversity and transformation;

2.15 To develop and promote black and female role models;

2.16 To develop a programme to recruit, train and retain disabled persons at all levels in the firm;

2.17 To comply with broad-based black economic empowerment and equity legislation and charters.

GOAL 3 – OWNERSHIP AND CONTROL

To ensure that, as soon as practically possible, the people who own and control the firm broadly reflect the diverse racial, cultural and gender profiles of the South African population.

OBJECTIVES

3.1 To increase significantly the number of black and female directors so that in the shortest practical time, their ratio among directors is broadly representative of their numbers in the South African society as a whole;

3.2 To determine properly, communicate and maintain objective merit as the criteria for admission to directorship;

3.3 To recognise the importance of organic growth of directors and therefore continue to recruit and retain the highest quality of professional staff;

3.4 To be the law firm of choice for all prospective attorneys in South Africa and to put in place talent search and recruitment practices that ensure that the firm recruits persons who have the best possible potential to become directors;

3.5 To aim to ensure that:

• At least 50% of candidate attorneys employed during the next 5 years are black;
• At least 66% of candidate attorneys employed during the five years thereafter are black and then that the proportion of black candidate attorneys employed is broadly representative of the ratio of black people in the population as a whole.
• At least 50% of candidate attorneys employed during the next 10 years are women;

3.6 To increase the pool of potential directors by seeking to retain the highest and most diverse quality of professional staff by means of best retention policy and practice;

3.7 To proactively seek to employ associates, senior associates and directors from outside the firm who can add special value to it, with special preference given to black and female candidates;

3.8 To proactively seek mergers with black or female empowered, and black or female owned firms, provided that those mergers add value and make good commercial sense;

3.9 To optimise the opportunities to recruit, seek out lateral hires and identify mergers by exploiting and developing the internal and external networks which people in the firm have and to encourage the use of these networks;

3.10 To adopt best practice in relation to performance assessment, training and development in order to remedy inadequacies and accelerate the promotion to directorship;

3.11 To encourage and equip directors more effectively to transfer skill to potential directors and not to accelerate the retirement of directors;

3.12 To recognise that in order to implement transformation the firm must have targets against which progress can be measured;

3.13 To recognise that the critical pre-condition for meeting transformation targets is growth of the firm;

3.14 To commit itself to improve productivity significantly in all areas of its operations in order to meet its growth objectives;

3.15 To reach the following target of black and female ownership;

• at least 17% black ownership by 2009
• at least 30% female ownership by 2009
• at least 34% black ownership by 2014
• at least 35% female ownership by 2014

The firm has also established targets in more optimistic and conservative growth scenarios;

3.16 To explore alternative models of ownership if the forecasts mentioned above prove unacceptable to important stakeholders or prove substantially incapable of being met;

3.17 To ensure that economic benefit broadly matches risk and that ownership broadly matches control;

3.18 To develop and apply measurable targets and criteria and to evaluate and monitor progress;

3.19 To communicate effectively about progress both internally and externally;

3.20 To continue to distribute profits to directors on the basis of merit, broadly in accordance with the existing distribution process, but adapted to take account of directors’ contribution to the implementation of this transformation strategy;

3.21 To ensure that the representation of blacks and women on EXCO broadly reflects the demographic profile of shareholders from time to time. At future elections of EXCO, the directors should take account of this commitment in their nominations, availability and voting. In the event that, at any time, the composition of EXCO does not meet the objective, then the chairman must, in consultation with the appropriate shareholder groups, co-opt persons onto EXCO to realise the objective;

3.22 To comply with broad-based black economic empowerment charters.

GOAL 4 – LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

To ensure that, as soon as possible, the people who manage and lead the firm broadly reflect the diverse profile of the South African population and that they are appropriately empowered and skilled to manage the firm towards its strategic objectives.

OBJECTIVES

4.1 To provide appropriate training to all managers and team leaders in diversity management, basic management skills, participative management, communication skills, conflict resolution and delegation skills;

4.2 To make all managers and team leaders accountable for diversity;

4.3 To incorporate diversity management into managers’ key performance indicators;

4.4 To identify and train key leaders of the firm in leadership skills that equip them to implement the transformation strategy;

4.5 To have and apply measurable management and leadership targets and criteria, and to evaluate and monitor progress;

4.6 To have policies and practices that are, and are perceived to be, fair in relation to the management of:

• Team composition and functioning
• Rotation of candidate attorneys
• Delegation and workflow

4.7 To address anomalies in regard to fee earning by black lawyers in the firm;

4.8 To manage anomalies identified in the cultural audit in relation to associates;

4.9 To link leadership and management with performance management;

4.10 To communicate effectively about progress in leadership and management both internally and externally;

4.11 To ensure that managers are appropriately authorised to manage and to ensure that their authority and the firm’s management structures and processes are respected by all;

4.12 To ensure that departments, practice areas, teams and other management structures meet at appropriate intervals for the purpose of communication, consultation, feedback and accountability;

4.13 To ensure that appropriate managers in the firm meet at least once per year to review the execution of the firm’s overall strategy and goals;

4.14 To comply with broad-based black economic empowerment and equity legislation and charters.

GOAL 5 – INTERNAL COMMUNICATION

To overcome barriers to communication related to race, gender, culture and status within the firm and to encourage open, honest and effective communication between all people both individually and within appropriate communication forums.

OBJECTIVES - INTERNAL COMMUNICATION

5.1 To improve individual communication skills and practices at all levels in the firm;

5.2 To establish appropriate channels of communication and communication forums in the firm;

5.3 To establish a facilitated, consultative forum which is representative of directors, senior associates, associates, candidate attorneys and staff and which is appropriately representative of race and gender in the firm. The purpose of the forum should be to act as a channel of consultation and communication:

• between the directors and non-directors on strategy and policy matters, including transformation
• between directors and non-directors on issues of concern to non-directors, including transformation;

5.4 To increase the involvement of all people in the firm in decision-making;

5.5 To explore means to ensure greater participation by new directors in the decision-making of the firm;

5.6 To link effective communication to diversity management;

5.7 To link effective communication to performance management;

5.8 To develop and apply measurable communication targets and criteria, and to evaluate and monitor progress.

GOAL 6 – IMAGE AND PROFILE

To ensure that the firm’s image and profile is aligned with its transformation strategy and the new and changing South African environment.

OBJECTIVES

6.1 To review the firm’s image, profile and marketing strategy;

6.2 To transform the marketing function and empower and unleash that function;

6.3 To ensure co-ordinated cross-selling;

6.4 To review strategy in respect of new clients acquisition;

6.5 To develop a marketing strategic plan;

6.6 To establish a business and marketing plan for each practice area to assist in diversifying the firm’s client base;

6.7 to communicate about the firm’s past and present contribution to transformation;

6.8 To communicate and internally market this Charter;

6.9 To enhance the internal and external profile of the firm’s leadership;

6.10 To monitor what the legal profession is doing in relation to transformation and to engage with them about it;

6.11 To align the firm’s marketing strategy with the transformation strategy;

6.12 To ensure that all forms of marketing reflect the changing firm accurately;

6.13 To communicate the transformation strategy and its achievements to clients and the broader community;

6.14 To train people in the firm on how to market themselves and the firm;

6.15 To cultivate a strong firm alumni base;

6.16 To develop and apply measurable image and profile targets and criteria, and to evaluate and monitor progress;

6.17 To link alignment with the firm’s image and profile to performance management.

GOAL 7 – SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

To ensure that the firm makes a contribution to the development of South African society and to disadvantaged people in particular.

OBJECTIVES

7.1 To implement a targeted procurement strategy that promotes economic empowerment and includes professional procurement from correspondents and advocates;

7.2 To establish and implement other appropriate social responsibility policies, projects and processes;

7.3 To review the current bursary programme – including the legal bursary programme-with a view to following through to employment opportunities and the promotion of transformation;

7.4 To explore transformation programmes with clients which involve training clients’ employees and strengthening ties with clients;

7.5 To promote and encourage the pro-bono work of the firm including links with legal aid and law clinics;

7.6 To identify skills transfer opportunities and secondment programmes with black and African law firms;

7.7 To develop and apply measurable social responsibility targets and criteria, and to evaluate and monitor progress;

7.8 To link contribution to the firm’s social responsibility strategy to performance management;

7.9 To communicate effectively about the firm’s social investment activities;

7.10 To promote small and medium enterprise development;

7.11 To comply with broad-based black economic empowerment and equity legislation and charters.

GOAL 8 - CLIENTS AND PRACTICE DEVELOPMENT

8.1 To listen to and be responsive to the needs of existing and potential clients, particularly in relation to transformation;

8.2 To identify and serve potential new clients and practice areas in a changing South Africa;

8.3 To seek to develop the firm’s practice globally and within Africa in particular;

8.4 To establish transformation partnerships with clients;

8.5 To link alignment with the firm’s client and practice development strategy to performance management;

8.6 To establish a specialist black economic empowerment and transformation practice area to advise clients and consult internally;

8.7 To communicate effectively about progress both internally and externally;

8.8 To develop and apply measurable client and practice development targets and criteria, and to evaluate and monitor progress;

8.9 To comply with broad-based black economic empowerment and equity legislation and charters. To maintain and develop a diverse client base and range of practice areas which is appropriate to the new and changing South African, African and international environment.

EXECUTION

The execution of this Charter shall be a high priority responsibility of the chairperson who shall ensure its execution through EXCO and all levels of management in the firm.

TRANSFORMATION ACTION PLANS

1. The chief executive officer, in consultation with the chairman and EXCO, should develop detailed short term, medium term and long term action plans to ensure the implementation of the transformation goals and objectives.

2. Such action plans should address all the stated goals and objectives and take careful account of the suggested action plans put forward by the focus group to the directors in the Indaba Minute.

3. The chief executive officer should present the action plans to the Bowman Gilfillan consultative forum for consideration and comment.

4. Action plans should ultimately be approved by EXCO. The execution of this Charter shall be a high priority responsibility of the chairperson who shall ensure its execution through EXCO and all levels of management in the firm.

MONITORING AND REVIEW

The Bowman Gilfillan consultative forum shall be convened on a regular basis to monitor, review and make suggestions to EXCO on the implementation of this Charter.