General Membership FAQs

To become an IoDSA member, you must have at least 5 years of management experience and meet the specific member eligibility criteria as well as our general membership eligibility criteria (which is aligned with the Companies Act eligibility requirements for directors). For more information, click here 

As an IoDSA Member, you demonstrate your commitment to your profession and adherence to a professional code of conduct (which you can be held accountable to), thereby enhancing your career and recognition as a governance role player. You also join a community of aspiring and experienced directors, access exclusive events, and stay updated on governance trends.

The application process involves submitting an online application, required documents, and membership fees. The review and approval process takes 7-10 working days. Approved members receive a welcome email and member certificate. If declined, fees are refunded minus a R575 (incl. VAT) non-refundable fee.

No, the IoDSA does not offer payment plans or other instalment subscriptions. Membership fees are charged on an annual basis and must be paid in full up front.

If you join the IoDSA during September to November, your membership fee covers the remainder of the current year plus the entire following year. This ensures you won’t have to pay again soon after joining (as the annual renewal period starts in November) and guarantees uninterrupted access to all member benefits. It’s a cost-effective approach, as you receive extended membership at the current year’s rate.

We advertise NED vacancies to our Professional members but do not facilitate recruitment or guarantee appointments. We offer benefits and programmes to help you become board-ready, including a Board Enhancement Programme for Certified Directors.

Executive manager means a manager at executive level who is not a voting member on a functioning board but who attends board/board committee meetings as an invitee and/or who prepares and presents reports to a functioning board and/or its committees.

A functioning board means a formally constituted governing body that exercises independent oversight, meets regularly, maintains proper records of decisions, and ensures effective reporting to shareholders or equivalents.

A person is regarded as a director when they are formally appointed to the governing body or board of directors of a company (i.e. they are a voting member on the board and is part of the overall decision making and oversight of the organisation). For example, in the context of a company, the person would be registered at the CIPC as a director.

Yes, you may still qualify for membership under the Associate Member category.

The IoDSA has a Recognition of Prior Learning programme. If you do not have an NQF 6 qualification, you can still meet the eligibility criteria if you have at least 5 years of executive management or directorship experience.

Professional Members can apply for either of the two designations should they meet the eligibility criteria.

The 5-year membership requirement is directly related to the visa validity period. Individuals who apply for the critical skills visa membership must be in a director position in order to qualify for IoDSA membership.

No, only active members (i.e. approved and fully paid-up members) qualify for training discounts and access to any other member-only benefits.

Individuals who obtain membership through a Corporate Membership have the same benefits as Individual Members. The company that has the Corporate Membership qualifies for certain corporate member benefits designed specifically for the organisation. (View member benefits).

No. Membership benefits apply only to the subscribed individual members of the organisation. The organisation itself, however, enjoys specific corporate benefits that can be enjoyed by the entire organisation, such as discounts on in-house training programs (the delegates of which do not need to be the subscribed individual members), etc.

One of the requirements for a corporate membership is that the company subscribes to a minimum of 5 members. Should you not have 5 directors, you may include individuals within your management team in your corporate membership (provided they meet the minimum membership eligibility criteria). Get in touch with our Membership Team via membership@iodsa.co.za for further assistance.

The IoDSA member stratification project aims to align membership categories to better serve aspiring and professional directors. We believe that Associate Members are the future leaders and directors of tomorrow. To ensure that members derive maximum benefit and achieve membership alignment, we felt that the “Future Leader” category (which was aimed at under-21-year-olds who did not have the minimum management or necessary executive or director experience) was not aligned with our membership purpose. We believe that a large portion of the current “Future Leaders” will qualify for the Associate Membership category. We will continue to engage with universities and other initiatives to support and raise awareness among younger future leaders.

Membership fees can be paid using either EFT, Credit Card or Snapscan. Should you choose the EFT option, an invoice will be generated and provided to you, which will include our banking details. Please ensure that the invoice number is used as a reference when making payment in order for us to allocate funds accordingly. Delays in allocation or activation of membership due to incorrect references used shall not be held against the IoDSA, and in such instances, valid proof of payment will be required in order to find and allocate the payment.

No, event and training attendees are not IoDSA members. Whilst a profile is required on the IoDSA database to book for such events, the purpose of this profile is for record purposes and general IoDSA communication. To be an IoDSA member, you must formally apply for membership, be formally approved as a member (at which point you will receive a membership certificate and other related information), and pay the annual membership fee to continue to hold your IoDSA membership. Log in to your online profile page to check your IoDSA membership status - the member category field will indicate whether you are a member or not.