/ 2 October 2007

A no-nonsense role model

The face of business in South Africa is changing, with female executives breaking through the ‘glass ceiling” and being placed in top positions, says Tshidi Mokgabudi, Executive Director, KPMG.

Progress has been made by women in the more than 10 years of South Africa’s democracy but, she believes, there is still a long way to go.

‘While women make up 52% of the adult population, they comprise only 41% of the working South African population and only constitute 14,7% of all executive managers.’Thirty percent of our parliamentarians are women , as are nine of the 27 Cabinet ministers and eight of the 14 deputy ministers.”

But, says Mokgabudi, the appointment of the first female deputy president, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, is the most significant signal of a serious commitment to female leadership at the highest political levels in South Africa and is embodied in her championing of the Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative of South Africa strategy to halve poverty and unemployment by 2014.

This is why Mokgabudi believes women empowerment is important. ‘It raises the awareness of causes and charitable initiatives protecting the interests of women and children and makes a difference in the community, specifically with reference to women and children.

‘In addition, gender representation at executive management and board level is critical to ensure that we use all our people’s potential.”

In this, Mokgabudi says, mentoring plays an important part. ‘Mentoring is a key element to ensure the optimal effectiveness of employees through constructive management and growth. It unlocks the potential of an individual worker.”

She adds that mentoring can be very time-consuming as it involves the different approaches of coaching, training, discussion and counselling, and therefore the mentor and mentee will have to work closely together.

This should be done by the mentor creating a supportive learning environment and empowering the mentee to apply the learned techniques.

‘Work with and understand the mentee’s current reality and develop skills knowledge and attitudes. Change current perceptions to promote growth and development,” she says.

Mokgabudi says that to become a mentor you must be both available in the physical and emotional senses to share your personal growth and experience, and that it is best to mentor within your own field.

‘You are passing on the skills, knowledge, expertise that you have learned within the industry. A mentor is someone who has ‘been there, done that’.”

Last year, under the auspices of the KPMG Network of Women, Mokgabudi initiated a process in which 20 previously unemployed graduates joined KPMG on 12-month training contracts. A formal mentoring programme was started and the process was a resounding success.

‘The success of this programme has led to the number of graduates being taken on in 2007/08 increasing to 40.

‘Through this exciting programme, KPMG is supporting government’s recent employment initiatives and contributing tangibly towards the growth of our country and economy.”