Engineering News asked top recruitment consultant Diane Gotthardt about the future of engineering recruitment and DAV’s future therein:

1. What are the current trends in South Africa in terms of sourcing key staff in the engineering/technical/mining sectors and for sectors like renewable energy?
We are still in a skills short market. Excellent Engineers are being fought for globally and being paid high international salaries. Specifically in industries like Mining and Power Generation. It’s a global playing field and employers in SA need to come a long way to attract and retain key players in Engineering. In sectors like renewable energy we are starting to see some movement there but it’s early days. Some companies are progressive and have started looking for “green experts” but reports indicate that the massive boom for companies in the wind turbine manufacturing will come closer to 2015

DAV is listed with the Adcorp group and their Employment index for June indicates the following:
• Employment dropped sharply at an annual rate of 8.3% during June, the second consecutive monthly
decline. This represents a loss of 127,100 permanent positions and 5,712 temporary positions.

• Employment grew substantially in the high-skilled management and professional services categories
(21.9%), whereas employment declined sharply in the unskilled and semi-skilled categories (20.3%).

• Based on our monitoring of trade union activities so far this year, we estimate that South Africa will
lose 24.9 million days due to strikes and work stoppages in 2011 – an increase of 22% over 2010.

According to the World Economic Forum (WEF) – an international grouping of the world’s largest multinational corporations, South Africa’s labour laws and regulations rank 133rd among 139 countries in the world i.e. the 7th-lowest internationally.

“As the WEF notes in its 2010 Global Competitiveness Report, South Africa has the 8th-highest level of industrial conflict in the world (more…)

DAV staff would like to wish Nelson “Madiba” Mandela a happy 93rd birthday!

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, born 18 July 1918, served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election.

Mandela Day on 18 July is an annual international day adopted by the United Nations. Individuals, communities and organisations are asked to donate 67 minutes to doing something for others, commemorating the 67 years that Nelson Mandela gave to the struggle for social justice.

“Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine he sees all day.”
- H. Jackson Brown, Jr

Have you ever noticed how good you feel after a good laugh? How do you feel when you walk into a room and the people already there greet you with wide smiles?

Smiling is one of humankinds most unique and endearing traits- and it has important psychological and physiological effects too.
Smiling connects us with others, makes those around us feel happier, reduces the level of stress hormones and, amazingly, also has the same stimulating effect on our neurochemistry as eating 2,000 chocolate bars! (more…)

At a mere ten months of age baby Khensani, born with a cleft palate, faces a life of loneliness as an outcast in her community. But this week, thanks to the Smile Foundation and DAV Professional Placement Group, Khensani will receive facial reconstructive surgery that will change her life forever – allowing her to play with her friends, lead a normal life and above all, giving her the ability to smile.

Khensani is one of 15 children that will receive plastic and reconstructive surgery at DAV Smile week held at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Johannesburg from 21-24 June. These surgeries bring the amount of children that have benefited from surgeries around the country through the partnership between Smile Foundation and state academic hospitals, to about 700. “In Africa, one in 700 children are born with cleft palates,” said Hedley Lewis, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Smile Foundation.

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There’s something about Africa that gets into your soul. Whether in a farm at the foot of the Ngong Hills, looking out over the spread of Cape Town from breathtaking Table Mountain, transported into ancient history at Giza, encountering gorillas in the mist in the Congo or swept away in awe at the endless Skeleton Coast, few people forget the moment Africa seized their souls.

Africa is the last great growth frontier in the World, with South Africa as the gateway.

We at DAV strongly believe in the opportunities for Africa’s growth and so have opened a dedicated Africa and Emerging Markets Division. Our team is ready and fully geared up to place people for our clients throughout Africa – sourcing worldwide, in South Africa and in the relevant African country. Whether you are looking for board-level executives, scarce skills specialists, expats, large-scale project search, to be SA or in-country based or move between SA and in-country, we will find the best people for you.

Let’s have a closer look at this magnificent continent. (more…)

Known as the Human Polar Bear Lewis Pugh was the first person to complete a long distance swim in every ocean. He is best known for undertaking the the first swim across the North Pole in 2007 and for swimming across a glacial lake under the summit of Mount Everest in 2010 to draw attention to the melting glaciers in the Himalayas. (more…)

SANDTON, 8 April 2011 – DAV Professional Placement Group a leading South African recruitment firm today announced the launch of its Africa and Emerging Markets division, serving Africa and BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) as well as the Middle East. (more…)

So, my 54 fellow DAV runners / walkers and I took to the tar and set foot.

Whether the steps we took were fast paced or slightly more elegant and less sweaty, as a team we stepped up (and forward) and owned our race – J.P. Morgan would have been proud.

I was convinced this would be my last living day, Liani (a DAV colleague and previous Iron Woman competitor) spoke of those who have been training for the past weeks, well good on you guys, I respect you all, and no, I was not one of them. Instead I carbo-loaded with a pie and a chocolate at 10h00 in the morning!

We pavement parked near Wanderers (It helps having a little bean-car, I strongly advise you guys invest in one for next year). After much waiting, the “GO” light went green and along with my fellow non-trainer but partner in kicking all things behind, Jessica Pool, we aimed high and started our little mission 101.

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