According to experience, ethical leadership promotes higher levels of employee satisfaction and lower turnover rates. Even when their actions are not directly visible to their staff, ethical leaders should always act morally and appropriately in all aspects of their lives. Good corporate governance is promoted by the Institute of Directors in South Africa (IoDSA), which King IV defines as ethical and efficient leadership. Parmi Natesan, the CEO of IoDSA, finds that this is consistent with who she is as a person and what she stands for. According to her, businesses and the nation will go forward on a positive trajectory under the direction of ethical and effective leadership.
Indulged as CEO
Parmi Natesan is a certified chartered accountant who holds a BCom (cum laude) and a BCom (honors) degree and is a qualified Chartered Accountant by the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants. She started working with the IoDSA in 2010 as a Senior Governance Specialist before being appointed to Executive for Governance in 2015 and CEO in 2019.
Parmi is in charge of the business’s overall performance. She directs and keeps an eye on strategy implementation and progress. Over the past few years, she has made significant progress with the plan. The company’s performance has improved with time, and last year’s business success was the best in the company’s 60-year history. Her responsibilities also include a sizable portion of stakeholder relations. She is also in charge of reporting, especially the annual integrated report of the company, which she drafts.
Institute of Directors in South Africa
The Institute of Directors in South Africa is a nonprofit company that represents directors in South Africa. Its history spans more than 60 years. Although it is primarily a membership organization, it also provides various services pertaining to governance and directorship, such as board and governance training, governance advice services, and board evaluation services. Additionally, it owns and grants the Certified Director and Chartered Director SA director designations, both of which are registered with the South African Qualifications Authority. Better Directors, Better Boards, Better Business is its tagline.
The King Committee for Corporate Governance in South Africa and the many King Reports and Codes are both under the auspices of the IoDSA, which also promotes good corporate governance in South Africa.
Defines her Characteristics
Parmi is passionate and driven, and she goes above and beyond to accomplish her goals despite being a busy CEO in the fast-paced business world, working as a non-executive director on outside boards, and participating in numerous local and international forums and committees. She prides herself on being well-organized because she has such a hectic life and is constantly being pushed in a variety of directions. She made swift connections to figure out the best course of action. She is Meticulous—For her, quality and attention to detail are non-negotiable. This also means that she holds others to high standards, which motivates them to succeed. She is humble and doesn’t consider any task beneath her, so to speak.
Walks the Day
Parmi Natesan is not only an active housekeeper and mother. In order to give each area of her life attention, she tries to achieve balance in her life. She devotes a lot of time to raising her two teenage children because she believes it is our responsibility as leaders of today to produce better leaders of tomorrow.
Parmi is unsure of her favourite moment of the day. Each day is different. She places importance on recognizing even modest everyday victories. She personally begins each day with a 30-minute workout to get moving, and she practices intermittent fasting. She feels that for any professional in a leadership position, maintaining good physical and mental health is crucial.
Advancement of Leadership as a Woman
Parmi thinks it’s critically important that people regularly evaluate their leadership abilities and styles, especially as the world changes and the workforce’s generational shifts necessitate very different leadership talents than in the past. This calls for having their fingers on the pulse at all times and being quick to react.
Everyone is all continually developing new technical skills. Parmi believes that because of how quickly the world changes, professionals could easily become stagnant. There is thus a need for constant awareness of the most recent trends and advancements. She proposes reading, following specific social media pages or channels, interacting with like-minded professionals, and other activities as ways to do this. Learning on demand, whenever and wherever it suits them. People are becoming less and less inclined to want to spend an entire day in a classroom. They want to be able to schedule their growth around their needs. Parmi considers that learning a specific skill when needed is preferable to taking a protracted course that covers auxiliary material.
Diverse Teams make Better Decisions
Even if there has been considerable progress in recent years, there are still far too few women in positions of leadership. Parmi says, “Not because she thought women were better leaders than men, but simply because women were different leaders to men.”
It is in this uniqueness and diversity that the magic occurs. She thinks that’s why we need a mix of men and women in positions of power. Complex challenges are best solved by diverse teams. She claimed that members of varied groups tend to be more diligent around people they see as being “different,” challenge one another more readily, and study more facets of a problem, avoiding group thinking.
Some people really feel that the conversations taking place at the boardroom table are far more vivid, not because women are superior to men, but rather because they simply approach leadership and business differently. Organizations currently operate in a challenging environment with numerous stakeholders and face fresh competition. Parmi is clear that if the leadership is made up of only one type of person and lacks diversity of thought, chances are it will continually be at a disadvantage because it won’t be able to think like its numerous stakeholders, employees, and, most importantly, rivals.
The Definition of Success
For Parmi, success means doing her part to improve the world. Making a positive contribution to the board of directors and, ultimately, society entails improving the company she is privileged to lead. It entails giving employees the freedom to achieve more than they previously imagined. It entails bringing up responsible, hardworking kids who will make a positive contribution to society in the future.
Over the years, Parmi has received numerous honors and distinctions.
- The Rising Star Award from the Nelson Mandela University
- Top 40 under 40 from Destiny Magazine
- Global Woman Achiever from the World Women Leadership Congress
- Finalist for Businesswoman of the Year at the Top Women Awards
- Ethical Leadership Difference Maker Award from the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants
Suggestions for Young Women
Parmi sees women attempting to fit into what they perceive to be a traditional male environment far too frequently. They believe that in order to be accepted and successful, they must act, dress, and speak in a particular way. Because women and men are so different from one another, we need more women in leadership roles. Parmi suggests embracing your individuality and showcasing the worth that only women can provide to the world.
Quote: I am especially proud that my first two Integrated Reports as CEO have won the Integrated Reporting Awards in the NPO category for 2020 and 2021.
Not because she thought women were better leaders than men, but simply because women were different leaders to men.
Written by Steve Sanchez.
