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Retirement fund pioneer uses award prize money to empower trustees

18 August 2010

Prof Tyrone Pretorius Pro Vice-Chancellor and President of Monash South Africa receives the Johnny Walker Celebrating Strides Award prize money from Mr Max Maisela of NBC which will be used for training retirement fund trustees.
Prof Tyrone Pretorius Pro Vice-Chancellor and President of Monash South Africa receives the Johnny Walker Celebrating Strides Award prize money from Mr Max Maisela of NBC which will be used for training retirement fund trustees.

Retirement fund pioneer Max Maisela, who put his dreams of helping workers negotiate the best deal for their retirement years into action and so helped change the face of the pension fund industry in South Africa, is the winner of the Business Category in the Johnnie Walker® Celebrating Strides Awards 2010.

Maisela is putting his prize money of R125 000 to good use by paying the tuition fees for a group of elected pension fund trustees to study towards a tailor-made course in Trusteeship at Monash South Africa.

He says many of the elected member representatives on the boards of trustees are ill equipped to best handle their pension fund members’ interests. Now he has made it his mission to ensure that elected trustees are well trained and empowered to take charge of retirement fund savings for their members.

At a function at the Monash South Africa campus last week, Maisela formally handed over the cheque to Prof Tyrone Pretorius, Pro Vice-Chancellor of Monash South Africa.

Maisela said: “I am pleased that this prize money will be used for training and empowering trustees and thereby in the long run promote workers’ best interests.” 

Nearly three decades ago Maisela, formed the company NBC to help protect and benefit the unique retirement needs of black South African employees. At that time many black employees were either excluded from membership of retirement funds, or were members of employer-controlled funds that failed to meet their needs and aspirations.

Maisela was instrumental in helping emerging labour and liberation movements establish negotiated benefit funds for their members. All registered retirement funds in SA now require direct member representation on their board of trustees.
                                                                                               
With its Head Office, Johannesburg, NBC became an independent company 11 years ago and now has branches in Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth, and satellite offices in Polokwane, Richards Bay and Rosslyn. In addition it has established joint venture partnerships in Namibia, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozambique and Malawi.

Maisela is a firm believer in education and is an active board member at Monash South Africa. He is also involved in a number of corporate social investment programmes aimed at developing opportunities for young graduates from previously disadvantaged communities – including the Student Sponsorship Programme (SSP), the NBC Learner Programme, Booksmart and the Association of South African Black Actuarial Professionals (ASABA).

Tracey Kirsten, Johnnie Walker® Marketing Manager says the Celebrating Strides Awards initiative recognises and honours individuals who have made strides to achieve their dreams, on a personal or business level and who through their success inspire others and empower their communities.  Aside from having done extremely well in their particular fields, the winners’ involvement in community development was a key deciding factor.