VENUE NEWS

From left: Sun City’s general manager, Brett Hoppé (seated) with the resort’s executive team: Ntsako Mpenyana, resort HR manager; Kegomodiswe Monegi, resort IT manager; Kagiso Motsisi VIP gaming manager; Nombuso Buthelezi, convention centre manager; Khumo Magano, former SED & community engagement manager; Ugen Govender, resort financial manager; Ken Payet, general manager sports/ recreation; Julius Ramotse, general manager: hospitality; Thapelo Modise, resort marketing manager; Hendrik Strauss, resort security manager; Khensani Mailula, gaming manager; Maleago Mahlatjie, executive secretary; and Josiah Montsho, general manager, The Palace Hotel. (Lwazi Mswelanto, resort sustainability manager was not available for the photograph).

Sun City leads the way in hospitality transformation

Sun City first opened its doors in 1979 with a primarily male staff contingent, but fast-forward four decades and the gender revolution has marched on — today, more women work at the resort than men.

Sun City, a R2-billion business, is leading the way in women transformation within hospitality and setting the pace for other corporates within the industry. “Today 58 per cent of our staff are women, 95 per cent of which are African, with many firsts with its leadership, among these including the first female gaming manager and the first female IT manager,” said Brett Hoppé, Sun City Resort general manager.

Traditional glass ceilings have long been broken and today, 53 per cent of these women are in leadership and senior management roles.

“With a focus on supporting the development of our female staff, there has been rapid transformation of the executive team over the past two years,” Mr Hoppé said. “This began after we analysed the employment equity gender split and saw that women were underrepresented in senior, middle and junior management across the resort, compared with their male counterparts. The Women Leadership Development Programme (WLDP) aims to address this, and we are making great strides over a short period of time.”

Of the Resort’s 13-strong executive committee, six are now women, namely Thapelo Modise, resort marketing manager; Nombuso Buthelezi, convention centre manager; Kegomoditswe Monegi, IT manager; Kagiso Motsisi, VIP manager; Maleago Mahlatjie, executive secretary and Khensani Mailula, gaming manager.

The WLDP has enabled career progression for Sun City women, developing suitably qualified and potential leaders, to build sustainable capabilities which will provide a platform to successfully compete for future leadership positions within Sun International. Eleven women are currently completing the programme’s basic level, while 12 are on the advanced level which results in them holding an Advanced Diploma in Management Practices NQF Level 7 from the Henley Business School programme.

“The programme focuses on equipping generalist business leaders with management skills to discover and retain raw talent, providing overall rigorous development to promote the readiness for the next leadership level, and building our women within the leadership pipeline,” Mr Hoppé said.

Some of the many success stories include, Kegomoditswe Monegi, who began in 2019 as the IT service desk manager at Sun City and was promoted to IT manager and currently sits on the executive board, in a male dominated industry.

“We are happy to have more women around our table as they have strengths which men can lack, including empathy and attention to detail,” Mr Hoppé said.