Providing a platform for managers in the healthcare funding industry to network with peers and mentors and hone their strategic thinking around industry issues is a key objective of a new Healthcare Forum initiated and organised by the Board of Healthcare Funders of Southern Africa (BHF).

“The BHF Healthcare forum is firmly focused on providing managers with an opportunity to engage with their peers on the broader challenges and opportunities within the healthcare industry.  Managers are typically responsible for delivering organisational results and supporting strategic initiatives by managing people, budgets, and operations, yet we see that opportunities to interact and learn more at key industry events and conferences remains very much a privilege of the C-Suite. If we are to develop and empower our managers to step up as future leaders who will be responsible for the sustainability of the private healthcare industry and the South Africans that it serves, this mind set must change,” says Dr Clarence Mini, Chairperson of the BHF. 

As business gets leaner and tougher and regulatory demands become more intense, managers need stronger skills and a deeper understanding of the key strategic issues facing the business and the broader industry.  There is a contradiction in that the demands on the middle management layer to act as a leadership pipeline is growing significantly, however the investment in skills development, mentorship and training needed for them to stand up to these onerous requirements is not keeping pace. 

“Managers provide an essential bridge between the top leadership layer and those responsible for the organisation’s daily operations which means that their skills need to be far wider than the purely technical aspects of the job.  They need to engage with people, manage expectations, provide direction and interpretation of the key issues, be catalysts of transformation,  motivate and retain skilled teams and they need to communicate effectively and listen at all levels of the business.  To a very large extent, managers set the tone for an organisation. If we expect our businesses and industry to grow and be strategically sound in future, we cannot continue to relegate our managers to the back office,” adds Dr Mini.  

The BHF Healthcare Forums are designed for managers to openly debate and discuss key issues and challenges in the workplace and the industry, promote and share ideas, and identify areas that they can improve upon. Each session is hosted by mentors and business people from within and outside the healthcare industry who share their insights and counsel on burning industry issues, regulation and business challenges, as well as how their own career journeys have evolved. 

“The BHF Healthcare Forums will act as catalyst for a new way of thinking about the importance of growing and equipping today’s managers for future leadership roles. Networking, mentorship and encouraging collaboration will be the focus in an industry that needs astute and strategically competent people to take it forward in time of increased economic and regulatory uncertainty, technological advancements and changing consumer paradigms,” concludes Dr Mini.

To book for the BHF Forums and to find our more, contact Mary Manamela at the BHF on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 011 537 0270.

Issued by: Dr Clarence Mini - Acting MD
Board of Healthcare Funders