Looking back on the past decade, South Africa has come a long way in balancing the scales. Looking back on the past decade, South Africa has come a long way in balancing the scales. Ministers are making a concerted effort to see all industries becoming majority black-owned within the framework of broad-based black economic empowerment.

But in recent years we have seen an exodus of highly qualified professionals from the public sector to the private sector.

Andile Ngcaba started the trend, followed by the likes of Sihle Mthethwa, who left Transtel to start up Simiso Marketing. Billy Twala left arivia.kom to join BTG Systems, and Bheki Zungu - the former NPA CIO - is now at Lerumo. And the list goes on.

Question: Is the call for BEE draining much-needed talent from the public sector?

The suggestion that companies that fail to comply with equity targets risk losing government contracts has driven some into a frenzy of finding the best people to sell equity to. They are also challenged by parastatals vying for the same market share. So they do the only thing possible; they headhunt experienced, well-connected, high-level civil servants that can put them in the front running for these contracts.

The multinationals, seemingly, are on the whole not able to transfer equity to empowerment companies, but are willing to partner with empowered companies, some of which are, again, headed by former public sector players who use their access to government corridors as their calling card.

While we`re not suggesting that greedy private sector business dealings are the sole or even main contributing cause of all this, the fact is that a steady trickle of high-level government exits is resulting in a net gain for business. And this can`t be good for all concerned. In creating a point system for not partnering with the usual high-profile suspects, could the government be trying to curb the Tsunami of exits to open C-level seats, offered in the guise of a modern-day Robin Hood?

The Last byte

RUMOURS, innuendo and embarrassing moments - the publishing of these things is the mission of our rumour mill at The Last Byte. Apparently ethnicity plays a big role in research in the US. In-Stat reports that revenue decreases from wireline services are expected from all ethnicities, but the lowest declines will come from Hispanic and Asian/Pacific Islander subscribers, "due to their population growth". By 2009, the firm predicts, more than 40.4 million whites are expected to subscribe to broadband. The number of Hispanic and Asian/Pacific Islander subscribers is expected to grow at faster rates. African Americans are expected to account for the second greatest percentage of dial-up subscribers, nearly 6.0 million, this year.

COMPANY names are often ill advised. Similarity Systems should look to Gestetner ads when next doing a brand revamp. Being the same as everybody else doesn`t really cut it. Better get Gestetner.

A NETWORKING vendor that has suffered considerable attrition is said to be in the running to be snapped up by another one, more famous in the US than locally. Does anyone know what gin is made of? That was a clue, and we`re not saying about which one of the two.

A GLOBAL first-tier brand is undergoing some changes. What you probably didn`t know about this particular vendor is that it`s closing some divisions.