Finding a home away from home

I joined the CHRO South Africa team earlier this year, in the senior writer role – and it has been a rollercoaster of a ride so far.

My background is mainly in mainstream journalism where I covered current affairs in science, technology, policy and academia locally and internationally.

Although I am comfortable mingling and interviewing top executives, I was a bit nervous at the start, to be in a niche HR community where everyone seems to know each other.

My anxiety was quickly eased when I attended my first CHRO South Africa event – the Humane Capital Summit, and was formally introduced to the community at large.

My first interaction with the CHRO South Africa community was easygoing. I found all of you welcoming, easy to engage with and comfortable sharing your opinions and thoughts.

During the subsequent one-on-one interviews with leading CHROs, I realised that everyone has a story to tell and most of the executives are more than just a title/position, but actual people with diverse backgrounds, out-of-office interests, families and so much more.

Since joining CHRO South Africa, I have been fortunate enough to interview women in executive leadership positions. This has been a great source of inspiration for me.

I am a mother to a young girl and seeing women succeed gives me a sense of confidence about the direction our country is headed. Most of the women I have engaged with within the community are also coaches and mentors to young women who are either in tertiary or entry-level.

This resonated with me because I also have a passion for the youth –particularly young black women. Whether it is upskilling, mentoring or just being there for guidance – I strongly believe that we need to pave the way for them to succeed and by doing so, also create a better future for all.

I am glad I joined this organisation at the time that I did because it gives me hope at a time when South Africa is facing so many challenges.

Being among leaders of your calibre shows me that not all hope is lost and many if not all are working hard to rebuild South Africa. I look forward to more engagements and I can safely say I have found a different type of home away from home.