Our Business
Our Chief Executive Officer’s summary of the year
Our Business
Our Chief Executive Officer’s summary of the year
Ravi Reddy CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
“FY25 marked the culmination of a transformative journey under our iHEALTh strategy, a journey that focused on operational excellence, strengthened digital infrastructure, and built the momentum we now carry forward.
As we transition into the ‘Serving with Heart’ strategy, we shift our focus to a more customer-centric future, driven by empathy, responsiveness, and a steadfast commitment to the people we serve.”
Reflections on the past year
We sustained robust blood stock levels, with some months maintaining more than 10 days group O cover nationally and exceeding 7 days even during the December festive period. This achievement was underpinned by our Donor Sustainability Project, with the focus on donor convenience and retention through increased blood drives and acknowledging donors through small tokens of appreciation. A notable achievement was that there were no cutbacks in the financial year.
In 2024, SANBS achieved ISO 9001 accreditation for the support services, an ambitious milestone that reflects our commitment to operational excellence and organisational alignment. This journey required extensive collaboration across all support services to document processes and establish Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) that align with core operations. ISO 9001 now serves as a foundation for strengthened governance, enhanced accountability, and improved efficiency across the company.
Our employee value proposition continues to yield meaningful results. This year, we expanded our bursary support for both staff and external students, investing over R1 million to strengthen the pipeline of future medical technologists. Through our pilot “Growing Our Own” bursary programme, SANBS awarded funding to 10 third-year Bachelor of Health Sciences students specialising in immunohematology. They will begin their internships with SANBS in January 2026. This initiative directly addresses the scarce skills gap while building a committed and capable future workforce. We also supported 84 staff and 63 employee dependents to study further.
FY25 was a year of strong financial performance. We delivered a healthy surplus and improved revenue collection through the Order-to-Collect initiative, supported by the reconfiguration of the interface between our laboratory and billing systems. We also closed out the Procure-to-Pay project, unlocking meaningful back-office efficiencies.
Notably, our disciplined pricing strategy, keeping increases in line with CPI (5–5.5%) rather than medical inflation (11–12%), has helped contain the cost of blood for the healthcare sector. This approach has earned SANBS valuable goodwill from medical aids and reinforced our role as a responsible and responsive partner in healthcare.
As a result of these efforts, SANBS maintains a resilient financial position, with approximately 8 months of operating reserves. FY25 marked a pivotal turning point as SANBS began transitioning from its operationally focused iHEALTh strategy to ‘Serving with Heart’, a people-centred strategy built on empathy, care, and responsiveness.
At its core lies a renewed commitment to customer-centricity: understanding the evolving needs of donors, patients, and healthcare partners, and placing them at the centre of every interaction, decision, and innovation. The strategy was rolled out through a national roadshow, engaging teams across all zones and functions to bring the new vision to life.
‘Serving with Heart’ signals a cultural transformation that redefines how SANBS engages with stakeholders, responds to challenges, and delivers sustainable impact across the healthcare ecosystem.
I would like to also share some of the other significant highlights for the year:
We are pleased to report that once again it was an outstanding year financially, with R 92.05m alternative revenue generated against a target of R84.58m. There was significant growth in procedures in the Specialised Therapeutic Services.
SANBS continued to lead with bold and collaborative campaigns to expand the donor base and improve national blood supply. A flagship initiative was Red Saturday, a joint campaign with the Western Cape Blood Service, strategically launched during the Black Friday weekend to raise awareness and drive high-volume collections ahead of the festive season.
The campaign activated over 80 malls nationwide and was supported by extensive media support, mobilising communities. We aimed to collect 5,000 units in one day, and while the final number of 6 870 reflected strong public response, the campaign's greatest success was in attracting first-time donors and reinforcing a culture of regular, community-driven donation.
80 malls
6,870 units
Testing and Quality
- Quality assurance excellence - All SANBS facilities maintained 100% SANAS accreditation during the year, reflecting our commitment to quality, regulatory compliance, and operational excellence.
Hearts and Minds
- Employee engagement - The 2025 Culture DNA score remained steady at 1.29, reflecting consistent employee sentiment during a time of organisational change.
- Strategic workforce planning - In alignment with SANBS' long-term sustainability goals, strategic workforce planning is gaining momentum. A phased, skills-based approach is being introduced to create a shared skills language, enable agile talent deployment, support internal promotions, and align capability development with strategic priorities.
