A “private” belly dancer, an aspiring Kilimanjaro climber and, if it tickles her fancy, a corporate environmental activist, if one does not deem that to be an oxymoron. These are the current and future projects of Mpho Nkeli, the executive director for human resources and black economic empowerment (BEE) at financial and risk management services giant Alexander Forbes.
Her past projects include careers in marketing and public relations as well as environmental sciences. “It is stimulating to change careers,” she says, noting that her target is to go through about five careers in her working life.
Her position makes her one of the most prominent commentators on empowerment and transformation.
Her definition of empowerment epitomises the simplicity that characterises a lot of what she does and is about. “I regard empowerment as being a transfer of power from those who have it to those who don’t,” she says, noting the importance of willingness, rather than being compelled, on the part of the former. Using her own case as an example of the importance of sincere intentions from those who have, she points out, “I was appointed by a man”. That man is former joint MD of Alexander Forbes, Theo Pauw.
“I specifically wanted a female for that position,” Pauw recalls of the appointment four years ago. He notes how Nkeli impressed with a “unique combination of qualifications”. Above that, Pauw says, he “had to ensure that the person had to overcome prejudices”. Nkeli simply won colleagues over with her confidence in her own abilities, poise and elegance.
Pauw credits Nkeli with having contributed to the appointment of other black executives, including Jeff Makgetha, the charismatic head of Alexander Forbes Compensation Technologies, and Lerato Lesole, the head of mining, transport and parastatals insurance division.
Pauw found Nkeli running a consultancy. But why did she quit her own business for corporate life? Simple really. Her husband, the renowned lawyer Jerry Nkeli, was unwilling to renew his contract as a Human Rights Commissioner and wanted to return to private practice, and they did not want to run their household on the volatile income streams of self-employment.
For her MBA dissertation, Nkeli analysed which of the pillars of transformation, from ownership and management to skills development and procurement, have the biggest impact. She concluded that employment equity, followed closely by procurement, has the deepest impression. This is largely because of its contribution to the growth of the black middle class and the spending effect it is having. But it is also because she expects blacks in senior positions to have empathy with aspiring black professionals, to advance skills transfer and finally serve as role models to entrants in companies.
She believes that the biggest threat to the long-term viability of BEE is when “we do not move from compliance mode” to a stage where transformation is an integral part of thinking about strategy.
Alexander Forbes, with operations in 12 African countries, the United States, the United Kingdom and Asia, has made significant strides in transformation. The BEE deal with Cyril Ramaphosa’s Shanduka investments was concluded in 2003 for R813-million. Currently undergoing an empowerment audit, Nkeli estimates that the company’s procurement spend on black suppliers stands at 46%.
After completing her MBA, she was unsure what to do with her time. That is when she took up belly dancing “which I only do in private, for my husband”. Next year she would like to summit Kilimanjaro with her 65-year-old mother, who currently runs 15km a day. How does she obtain work/life balance? “Never live far from your children’s school,” she says, “get a housekeeper and invest in your education”. And what does she tell female graduates who aspire to her level? “Always give your job your all; the rest will happen. If you ever reach a point where you have to choose between a higher salary and learning more, choose [the latter] and the higher salary will come.”