Sid Peimer Discusses Lessons from 217 Years of Association with Charlotte Kemp

Welcome to the next edition of the Associations Edition of Futures Facets. My name is Charlotte Kemp, Futures Alchemist, and my guest today is Sid Paima, the Executive Director of the Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Sid is a strategist, an author, and a speaker in his own right, and I know Sid from the Professional Speakers Association of Southern Africa, of which we are both members. Sid, welcome to our conversation today about associations, membership bodies, and now today we're talking to a business chamber as well.

Thanks, Charlotte. Great to be here virtually.

Virtually. So, um, we've had some interesting conversations about, um, you know, the work that the chamber does.

I've been a member of the Cape Chamber and loved my time there. Uh, tell me a little bit about, from your perspective, what does a business chamber do? What does, what does the Cape Chamber do? And, and I need to say how amazing it is your association, your chamber at least, is over 200 years old.

We're in our 217th year.

Wow, very impressive. If only all of our associations could reach that ripe, mature age.

So now we are definitely learning from our elders here.

I mean, in the body, not yourself.

Thank you so much.

All right, so tell us, what does the Chamber do?

The Chamber essentially serves, enables, and leads business in the region. And we also serve as the voice of business, and we do that through advocacy and providing services and products of value. And obviously, it's incredibly a challenging arena for voluntary associations today, but the challenge is you have to provide a value to your members. Because as I say, it is a voluntary association and it must be worth the investment in time and money.

Absolutely. Sid, you've mentioned being the voice of business and talked about advocacy. A lot of people involved in association management, especially if they're new to the field, don't realize that that is an important function that associations should be fulfilling. And if they do realize it, they're not entirely sure what they're supposed to do about that. So how does the, the Cape Chamber advocate on behalf of its members, on behalf of business in the Western Cape?

Okay, the first thing is, to be able to advocate, you have to be independent. In other words, you can't, you know, a chamber is a funny organization. It's not private, it's not government, it's not an NGO, it's not, but it's yet, it's a bit of everything. So the first thing you have to be as an association to advocate, is you have to be fiercely independent. You can't depend on grants or subsidies to be able to function. That allows us to speak up on behalf of business. So if any legislation is passed that we feel is not in the interest of business, we speak up. And, you know, our problems in this country are pretty blatant. You know, COVID is a storm. Storms are devastating, but they come and go. The things we're struggling with is our state-owned enterprises that are sucking us dry, our public wage bill, our crime, corruption at the highest levels, our social decay, you know, and our economy. And those are the persistent things that we need to keep an eye on and we need to advocate. And advocacy could be anything from bills that are being passed, and then we would speak up on behalf of business to perhaps guide— is a gentle word— but guide government in what the eventual outcome should be in the interest of business and the interest of the country. And then we would advocate even on a micro level. You know, there were certain suburbs that were dangerous and it was difficult for our members to do business there. And we would approach those specific sectors and make sure that those local problems were, were seen to.

All right, Sid, I mean, I think what you've just said in terms of COVID being a storm, I think that's really insightful. A lot of our businesses and our associations are experiencing experiencing the effects of the storm. But for us, it feels like something completely overwhelming because many of these bodies are not old enough to have experienced something. But in a 217-year history, Sure. Yeah, the Chamber would have experienced many such storms and recessions and political crises and economic problems and things like that, which allows you to put that into perspective and maybe to offer a calm voice to your members on occasion. Have you experienced any of that?

Have I? Yeah, they do look at us for some form of stability. And interestingly enough, our chamber has grown during COVID And I think probably for the reason that people look for support and guidance from a credible organization. And, you know, for the price of a packet of chips a day, you get the support of the, of the Cape Chamber. So yeah, we've been through the Spanish flu, the First World War, the Second World War, you know, the demise of Larry Agnew in Dallas. You know, we've been through all— what was his name? JR. JR, that's right.

JR.

Yeah, you know, everything's a cycle. But the situation is— I'm not going to sugarcoat it. The situation isn't great. We've had 25 years since democracy, and, you know, we were sold, or the country was sold a lot of hope in the beginning, but it really hasn't panned out. So that is disappointing.

Yeah.

And yeah, and also, you know, another role that we fulfill is we've never been as technologically connected as we are today. Yet, we have never been as socially disconnected as we are today. And what associations provide you with is, as the name says, it allows you to associate with your peers, which gives you that social connection. And it is so important for things like— you know what's really come on the radar now? We tried to bring it up earlier, but it just didn't seem so prevalent— is mental health.

Yes.

Now suddenly people are waking up to the issue of mental health, which has unfortunately been exacerbated by the pressures that COVID has brought in addition to everything else. So yeah, so that social connection— we're in business because of that social connection that we provide in addition to all the tangible benefits. Yeah.

Yeah, yeah, the, um, our initial responses, you know, when we first went into lockdowns around the world with COVID about a year ago, was everybody deciding to reach out and start, you know, daily Zoom calls and talk to people. So there's a flurry of activity. And then we got to a point where, um, we got all the overwhelm and all the practical considerations of COVID and now we had Zoom fatigue as well. So now we have to deal with additional pressures. And now we're starting to monitor our technology use. But like you say, that social connection has been very important.

Crucial.

And because we're remote, even though we can see each other, the loss of physical touch and hugs and, you know, being socially present with other people is definitely making an impact on a lot of people's mental health.

Yeah.

I know, and I'm saying this anecdotally, because my friends and colleagues in the mental health space are still frustrated that there's not enough conversation about it. But I'm seeing a lot more anecdotal evidence of people being prepared to talk about mental health when they wouldn't have. It would not have been cool or appropriate a year ago. And now it's responsible to say, I'm not in a good place today.

And I can't take these You know, it was a subject close to my heart. I mean, I've been managing major depression for about 30 years. And whenever I used to go out and speak, and the topic would get to mental health, I would notice the audience pull back.

Yes.

Okay. And also, we don't know how to talk about it. We come up with terms like burnout. Burnout is not a medical term. It says, well, it's not my fault. You made me work too hard, or whatever the case is. And I'm actually OK. There's nothing wrong with me. So we call it—

well, it's not.

99% of the time, it's anxiety and depression. So COVID's not the cause of the increase in mental health issues or wellness issues. It just has accelerated it a little. And it was something that was, you know, you get absenteeism, you get presenteeism, which is when people are at work, but they can't focus. And the cost to the economy is enormous until we start dealing with it. But sorry, I've gone off on a tangent.

No, you might have, but it's such an important one. And if anyone is listening, and they're looking for a keynote presenter on depression, Sid is absolutely your guy, because So the presentation you did a couple of years ago on that, what's the blue employees?

No, no. Oh, you remember that? Blue people mean big bucks.

No, it was very good. It's important to have these conversations and for you to present it so honestly and so funny from your perspective makes it easier for other people to then open up the conversation. Yes.

I was very lucky because when lockdown hit us, I've been managing my mood for 30 years. So when lockdown hit us, it was great for me. I mean, if something changed in my environment, it didn't really affect me that much. But most people ignore managing their mood.

Yeah.

And we had a lot of mental health incidents during this time, people being— Actually, to the point of being admitted or needing support, and so I wouldn't blame it on lockdown. I think that's also a mistake. Yeah, saying oh because of COVID and lockdown, mental health has now become an issue. No, mental health has always been an issue, and until we learn to talk about it, until we learn to deal with it, it's always going to cost the economy. Not as much as our state-owned enterprises, but.

All right, well, that's another tangent we'll explore another day.

Hey, yeah.

You know, Sid, what we're finding is, especially in the volunteer space, people who are association executives in this space generally have their own business or their own career that they're pursuing, and then this role is an additional one that they have on top of their own work. And, you know, so this conversation that we just had is very important because The people who are in those responsible roles for an association are having to manage 2 different areas of concern, as well as their private lives and their families and everything else. So it is very important for us in association leadership to not avoid this topic, to find a way to address it. So it has been worthwhile.

Yeah, look, that doesn't apply to all associations. For the larger associations that I'm fortunate to be involved in, it's a full-time job. I just do other things because I'm interested in other things. I'm studying, you know, but this is a full-time commitment and I'm remunerated for that.

Yes.

And, you know, associations are very different. You know, you get the trade associations, you get general business associations, you get small ones, big ones. And our association is made up of a small team of 25 permanent employees. And I've got about 100 volunteers. And the president of the chamber, who's the chair of the board, and I report to the board, is somebody— that's a voluntary position. So there are a lot of people who have a lot to give.

Yeah.

And one thing we have noticed is that People, you know, with all our faults as human beings, people generally like to give. I mean, we just ran a course recently where we looked for lecturers for 4 sessions, and I had 80 highly qualified lecturers that were prepared to do the work, do the lecture. And also there's this misunderstanding that young people don't want to give, which is why they don't belong to associations and things like that. It's not that, you know, people— well, you've got to be cool today, but I'm pretty fly for a white guy. So, um, you know, you just, uh, uh, you have to give people the opportunity to be able to do that. And so when we brand something well, uh, and we, we make it, for want of a better word, sexy, uh, you get your volunteers.

Yes. Now that's fantastic. And I love working with those volunteers and in that space because you know, for me, the fact that someone is willing to take their creativity and experience and apply it somewhere else where the remuneration isn't financial, that it's something else. I just, I love what comes out of that. Let's, let's move on to another part of, you know, the important discussion. You're a strategist. So how are we looking at the future planning of our associations? Generally, or any kind of specific example, but how do you approach that? Because a lot of associations kind of manage their day-to-day work as opposed to sitting down and creating really big picture plans for the future. And then we kind of get a stale association as opposed to something that is sexy.

Okay, well, I'll tell you what we experienced that I think worked for us. It did work for us because we had a better year this last year than we had pre-COVID. Firstly, you need to understand something, that you can't predict the future. And if you think you can, you've got a problem.

Um, you just put all us futurists in our place, but yes, carry on.

Uh, oh, you can plan for the future.

That's different.

So there is a very important role for futurists, and I'm going to get to that now. Uh, yes, uh, that's— I'll come to that now. Uh, I think, I think, uh, there used to be a million-dollar prize, uh, for anyone who could predict extrasensory powers, including predicting the future, uh, and that was never claimed. Uh, there are a whole lot of prizes on the internet if you can show that you have extrasensory powers, including prediction. Uh, this is collectively about $1 million, uh, that you can pocket.

Wow.

Yeah.

Okay.

But nobody's, nobody's pocketed it for a very simple reason. You know, if you think you can tell them— look, there are certain things. You walk into a room, you feel the atmosphere, and you say to yourself, this is not going to go well, and it doesn't. Okay, so there are certain cues, but when people think that you can plan, it's, it's not the strategic plan that has value, it's the process of planning.

Yes.

When COVID hit, we've just been— we were so lucky. When COVID hit us, we were at a strategy, uh, in Darbar at a hotel. So when locked— when lockdown, we just changed the agenda And on that Sunday, the board in front of them had the strategy for how we were going to handle COVID. So that was luck. So, but, and then what we did after that is we actually planned 3 times a week. Okay, so it's not the plan itself that has value. It's the activity of planning.

Brilliant.

And to be able to sit down and to be able to say, well, what happens when this— what can we do? It's your ability to plan and And futurists can facilitate that. But anybody, if you can tell the future, I mean, I don't know, it's just these economists that—

Very good.

So let me just give you one or two practical examples.

Sure.

So the thing is, you have to innovate But innovate without knowing precisely what's going to happen in the future. Let me give you an example. Everybody complimented me on the fact that I had the foresight to put all our stuff onto laptops. And we actually went virtual within 24 hours. OK?

Mm-hmm.

Little do they know, the reason everyone was on laptops was I thought, look, laptops are sexy. You know, they're nice. I love technology. So I said, stop buying desktops. buy laptops. So it was, it was the change that we could afford. And the fact that it had this enormous payoff was precisely the point. Also, a lot of it, uh, um, you know, change is difficult for people. But I've worked, you know, I used to run up and down the passage when we had a passage screaming, um, if no one dies, the risk is acceptable.

Okay?

Mm-hmm. So by the time COVID hit us, Okay, and I came up with these weird ideas like, folks, we're upping our service level. Um, with, you know, so suddenly we had a virtual switchboard. We, you know, our hours were longer. Um, uh, we responded more quickly. Um, and, and, you know, so the mind— and the reason I did that was I just thought innovation was important, and the I see innovation as the new competitive currency.

Okay, okay, good.

Because you don't know what the future holds. Okay, so if you I hated this word when I first heard it, but it's it's so true. This pivot. Okay, if if you can't pivot, okay quickly enough, that's a problem. And you know. It all relates to innovation. I mean, and also obviously getting your basics right.

Yes.

We work a lot on strategy, and I'm in charge of strategy, but I summarized it into one word, okay? And our strategy is engagement. The more engaged we have members and potential members or anybody else, the healthier the chamber is. And so we can gauge innovations. You know, and that guides us. And then as long as it doesn't conflict with our core values, because the chamber brand's a very strong brand. Yes, the Cape Chamber brand especially, even amongst other chambers, is like probably, you know, because we're so large and we've been around a while. And yeah, so this whole thing about Having a plan for when things happen, to me, is not valuable. It's the fact that you do planning.

Yes.

And no matter what happens, because what's, what's in your plan is not going to happen, I can tell you that now. Okay. I mean, who foresaw this little bug that's now going to turn our lives upside down? You know, that, you know, uh, please, you know, now they're going back to Nostradamus and getting the extract, you know.

Oh, they would. All right. So I like to, you know, talk about, when we talk about scenario planning, it's the same thing. You know, strategic scenarios aren't designed to find a way to deal with a specific thing, but it's to change the mindset about what happens.

Correct.

So when we create scenarios, I heard this years ago, and it was like a lightbulb moment for me. People said, businesses get told to create a business plan for the next year, the next 5 years, whatever. So we create a business plan, a single business plan. And then things don't go well or go according to plan, and then the plan is derailed, and then we're like halfway through the year and we don't know how to talk to the bank or how to talk to the creditors or anything like that. So with scenarios, you create a minimum of 3 scenarios or 3 business plans. So your middle of the road, this is what I'm hoping will happen next year, you know, next year should be 10% better than this year. And then you have a utopian absolutely brilliant, out-of-this-world business plan, like all my dreams are coming true in the next 12 months. And then you have the dystopian, everything is going to go wrong. I'm going to have to retrench staff. I'm going to have to scale down or do something that— there's going to be something that is going to be really bad for my business. And when we have those, and we plan out what it looks like, what would the world look like? What would these opportunities look like? We, first of all, we deal with the emotions. So the devastation of a negative dystopian scenario, we deal with all of that in a quiet, safe period of time, not in the middle of the crisis, but before the crisis, before the imagined crisis. So when the actual crisis happens, we've already experienced that emotion. And then we can, we can respond more calmly, more logically as a leader in that situation.

Yeah.

And then the other side is equally as important. If we You know, if we hit like March or April and out of the blue we get this phone call or this email and we have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, if we haven't thought through what would happen if that happened to me, then we don't— we're going to say, oh, that would be so great, but, you know, my kids are in school here and I've got, you know, cats and dogs and I can't, you know, travel, or I, I don't have enough staff to fulfill that order, or I'm not ready to go online and do all these things. And we missed this grand opportunity because we weren't prepared for it. So the scenarios just help our brains to expand, to—

Correct.

To cope with what could happen and to be able to seize those gorgeous opportunities that we will really regret if we miss, as well as to kind of ride out the storms knowing that this is just one storm and that there is life after this. So I'm a, you know, firm advocate in that The value of the strategic plan for the sake of our brains and our emotions, if nothing else.

Correct. And not the plan itself. Yeah, it's, it's, it's the ability to exercise your mind to be able to spot options and to pivot. Yes, I'm gonna have to include that word.

We have to use the word. It's a good word. It's just like people got so excited about it. We keep hearing it too much. Yeah, fantastic. So this has been very insightful. Is there, um, or are there any, like, parting comments or insights that you, you want to just make sure you share?

Um, yeah, I, you know, I think, um, if you're going to try and engineer out risk totally, uh, that's— I don't think that's a good scenario to deal with the future.

Yeah.

Um, You know, and also it's return on investment. You know, you have to invest something to get a return. It's, it's been an interesting journey for me, and it's been an interesting journey for the Chamber. And but we've been fortunate because we've been allowed to ply our trade. If we were a restaurant, it would be a different story. Hotels, you know, it's tourism. It's been very, very difficult for them. But the 4th Industrial Revolution has arrived. It was on its way, it just arrived a lot quicker.

Yes.

Okay. And if you're not going to adapt to this paradigm that we live under now, it's not going to be an easy ride for you. You have to know that if you're not an agricultural field worker or a carpenter or a plumber or a gynecologist, plumbing and gynecology anyway, and then it's an opportunity. It is definitely, there's definitely an opportunity. And that's the saying at the chamber, our slogan is where opportunity meets. And it's certainly, certainly a lot of people have taken advantage of that and have managed to adapt and to be able to see the new horizon. And it's, it's, it's a new dawn in a way. And I think it's very exciting.

Yeah.

You know, absolutely, it is a tumultuous time perhaps, but there's plenty of opportunities even in this space. We do recognize a lot of people have suffered, a lot of businesses have suffered, and obviously, you know, there are some pretty scary stats out there about the numbers of infections and things. But, but, you know, if your 270-year-old history of the Cape Chambers proved anything, that you know, we as humanity can get past this kind of crisis and keep going if we are willing to be innovative and creative. And yeah, and we look forward to good leadership from association leaders all over. Sid, thank you very much. If people want to get hold of you personally, how would they— what would be the best way to find you?

Oh, pretty simple. Email is sid@capechamber.co.za.

Fantastic. So that and the links to the Cape Chamber and others will be in the show notes, and I invite you to have a look at what the Cape Chamber is doing. Certainly a very busy organization and certainly adding a lot of value to this part of the world. Sid, thank you very much for the conversation today.

You're most welcome. Thank you so much.

And that's it for today's session about the Associations Edition. If you'd like to get hold of Sid, he's given his email address, you can find those notes, or you can find Sid on LinkedIn. You can find me on LinkedIn. You can find this podcast on futurespodcast.com. And if you'd like to talk to me about planning some strategy, some future scenarios for your own association, then you can find me at futuresalchemist.com.