Thabo Mbeki, cited in:
This tells all of us that this person whose working day will not be governed by the hours he is contracted to work, but by the quality of the product he will have produced by the end of that working day.
When I look back, I know with certainty there are many things I should not have done. But they are part of me, part of who I have become, and they have a place in the context of my life. They are reminders that mistakes can be built on, that journeys are filled with learning and that the right path, whatever ârightâ may mean for you, is often only a step away.
Although I am a product of my circumstances, I believe we carry knowledge within us from elsewhere, enabling us to make better choices in this life. If we get the right parents, as I did, these choices come easier. Inner knowing helped me choose the right mentors in the form of brave managers, who took the risk of betting on a darkie in time when people like me werenât considered for thinking roles in business.
After years of oppression by the amaGcaleka in the Transkei, the Fingo established themselves in the south-western corner of what is now the Eastern Cape. In the 1830s they forged an alliance with English missionaries - considered one of the worst things black people could do at the time, as it meant declaring loyalty to the British and their god. But it was also a commitment to education. And that shaped us.
... and my motherâs name was Nombeko - the one who has respect, which was how she treated everyone who worked for her. This has stayed with me and influenced me: treat people properly and theyâll respect you.
A curious thing happened on my first day at Unitra. I was about to get into a lift on campus when I spotted an envelope on the floor and picked it up. It was full of banknotes, enough for tuition and accommodation for the whole year. There was no one around. For a moment I panicked. What should I do? I got into the lift and pressed the button to close the door.
I kept the envelope, waiting to hear if anyone had lost money, Eventually I used it to pay what my parents owed the university. When I told my mother about it she decided it must have been God smiling on us. Did I make the right decision? Maybe I should have done things differently and handed it in. But I didnât.
Although I kept myself busy, I still couldnât shake off the feeling that I didnât fit, that I was being avoided instead of embraced. Once Iâd finished a project, my next wasnât always waiting for me, despite the fact that Afrox was forging ahead, investing in healthcare and supplying oxygen to hospital groups, and trying to stay ahead of competitors such as Air Liquide and Air Products.
I also came to realise that selling is part of our lives. Those who are masters at it - be it selling ideas, products or services - can influence the future. Selling is an important leadership competence.
Zoleka and Anda arrived to join me in August 2001, summer, and we moved into our new home. Feucherolles was green and pretty and wooded. We bought a second-hand car, a Ford Focus, and got to know the neighbourhood. The outer suburbs of western Paris are home to a large English-speaking expat community, so we could at least converse with our neighbours in a language we understood.
Expectations were high, my performance low. I knew the subject, but somehow couldnât articulate my ideas coherently. Delegates didnât hold back when it came to criticism and told me afterwards that my strategy was unclear, my content muddled and that I had given them no clear direction. It would have been so easy for me to have run my presentation by Louis in the days before I gave it - but I hadnât wanted to subject myself to negative feedback. So Iâd blundered on. I felt that Iâd blown it and feared being sent back home.
Louis Guelette, cited in:
We decided to make him responsible for the revenue target of the SMB sector in South Africa, an area with limited resources that needed cooperation with business partners - a complex world that he didnât know very well. Complex because such relationships can be with both partners and competitors and very much depend on the right deal being struck. Such management requires maturity and diplomacy and I was surprised to find these qualities and characteristics in a young man with little practical experience of the business.
Louis Guelette, cited in:
We had discovered a potential leader, a bright man with a high level of attention for others and an incredible ability to motivate people around him - not only those who reported to him, but also his peers.
There are people able to unite teams wherever they are - Mteto is one of them.
I enjoyed working with this great man.
Mark Harris, cited in:
Leadership in a multinational company requires strong communication skills, forthright management styles, personal business drive and organisational development. Mteto was a very humble individual and was very quiet in his approach but he demonstrated an intellectual capability that clearly showed his talents.
In 2009 I attended a PRISM (Priority Setting Meeting) at Microsoft HQ in Redmond, near Seattle. There I introduced myself to Orlando Ayala, an advisor to Microsoft Chief Operations Officer Kevin Turner. As a Colombian, Orlando had a good grasp of the challenges I was facing: his home country and mine were grappling with similar political and socio-economic issues.
This is what I have come to know about white privilege. The playing fields are nevel level. One can be angry about it, or weep about it. I donât waste my emotions on bigots. I just try to outperform racists. I subscribe to former US first lady Michelle Obamaâs adage - âWhen they go low, we go highâ.
Iâd leave my PA, Shenaaz Aliverdi, behind, take a notebook with me and ask questions like: what would you do differently if you were me? What is it that management is doing right and should do more of? Participants had to answer both questions - they couldnât be passive. Youâd be amazed at the insights one gets about business from these two questions.
I was rather horrified by the amount of extramarital âplayingâ that went on below deck. On our return, I organised a survey to find out whether spouses should come along on such trips in future. To my surprise, 55 per cent of staff voted no, 45 per cent were in favour. I'm old-fashioned when it comes to fidelity, so on moral grounds I overruled them. The majority isnât always right. As a leader there are certain issues you need to take a position on.
It is not an either/or situation. As a nation, we have to understand the power of âandâ. These ideals are deeply embedded in our national constitution. It is who we are.
When I joined MTN I began visiting operations in Nigeria, Ghana, the Ivory Coast, Botswana and Kenya and discovered that although the companyâs presence was geographically wide-spread, head office was surprisingly insular. Staff in those countries told me that, when group executives visited, they hardly ever engaged with employees and customers. This concerned me as my understanding of our role at headquarters implied a high level of involvement: giving operational leadership direction, guiding and coaching staff, reviewing and providing feedback to operating companies and helping with their sales effort - all while holding them accountable for results. MTN head office appeared to operate more as a holding company rather than as a strong centre.
The best person for the job couldnât suddenly be the wrong colour. Transformation was a broad process and shouldnât be measured by one or two appointments.
Larry Annetts, who had been MTNâs chief marketing officer in Nigeria and in Iran, had become chief consumer officer and was clearly the right person for the job, being action orientated with the ability to break mammoth tasks into chunks that could systematically be dealt with.
Leadership is more than a position. You must influence, motivate, engage and share priorities with your staff. But our leaders seem to have trouble standing up and sharing, even when you created a platform for them.
We donât need carrots and sticks to incentivise people. We need those with a deep understanding of our values - that is what guides us. And if weâve got people who are not living the values, they might have to work elsewhere.
Every successful turnaround follows specific steps⌠applicable in any scenario, be it business or government. The first step is to focus on understanding the problem. Ramaphosa was SAâs deputy president - he had a prime seat at the table to watch the wrecking ball that was his boss. He understood the mess that had been created.
The second step is to develop and communicate a compelling vision. When he was campaigning to become ANC president, he came up with the ânew deal for SAâ. This was seen as the genesis of his post-Zupta vision - the New DawnâŚ
The third step in a turnaround is to establish a few vital goals and pursue them relentlessly. The president has set himself these goals and moved with speed to fix state-owned enterprises, replacing compromised board members with people of integrityâŚ.
The fourth step is to clean the house at the top. The president had an opportunity to bring fresh blood into his new cabinet, thereby cleaning the house completely. He missed the opportunity - his pick of ministers included questionable politicians but he did well with others, particularly Tito MboweniâŚ
The fifth step is to inspire and deliver a message of hope. It is important for the president, in words and actions, to shift the countryâs mood from despair to hope⌠The message of hope is taking hold - at a recent investment conference, local companies pledged R290bn of investment. These early wins will engender hopeâŚ
As you close your turnaround, the last step is to create supporting alliances. The president is doing a great job in mobilising business, Cosatu, Sanco and religious organisations behind his New Dawn⌠he need to continue building a coalition of the committed.
Whoopi Goldberg, cited in:
Weâre here for a reason. I believe a bit of the reason is to throw little torches out to lead people through the dark.
Denzel Washington, cited in:
Show me a successful individual and Iâll show you someone who had real positive influences in his or her life. I donât care what you do for a living - if you do it well Iâm sure there was someone cheering you on, or showing the way. A mentor.
If you want to take the system down, provide a better alternative at least. At heart Iâm an engineer. I want to encourage people to fix things, not to raise false hopes. Engineers often make good CEOs because they have a built-in desire to make things work. They understand the unique details of a problem and how they all come together in a big picture. They are trained to consistently produce successful outcomes.
Before I made the decision to leave MTN and move to Altron, I spoke to Sifiso Dabengwa, whose wisdom I value. As usual, he helped me to connect with who I am. He guided me to find my own answers. We meet once a quarter and he gives me a fresh perspective, or confirms that Iâm on the right track. One of the greatest values of mentors is their ability to see what you may not be able to and to help navigate a course. Meetings with Sifiso leave me motivated and thatâs what mentorship is about.