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Charmaine Mabuza :Founding member and group CEO of Zamani Holdings; CEO of Ithuba Holdings
Charmaine Mabuza :Founding member and group CEO of Zamani Holdings; CEO of Ithuba Holdings
Charmaine Mabuza is one of South Africa’s leading businesswomen and a true example of entrepreneurial excellence. Women in executive leadership positions are a rarity in the gaming industry and she is among a very small percentage of women who lead gaming companies, and an even smaller percentage of women who lead such industries globally. Charmaine is the first black female to run a lottery operation in South Africa.
In the six years ITHUBA has been operating, she has led the charge to align the company with international best practices and cutting-edge technology, implementing a strategy to move the National Lottery into a digital realm. Charmaine Mabuza is someone entrepreneurs and aspiring leaders can look up to, she truly encapsulates what a true leader is.
She is a firm believer in education and that one should never stop learning. She is setting an example by furthering her studies at Harvard Business School.
Of all the hats that she wears, mom, wife and grandmother are her favourite roles. In her busy schedule, Charmaine always finds the time to spend quality time with her family. She enjoys gardening, cooking and traveling.
Her hard work and resilience have been exemplary and have inspired other women, especially young women to go for their dreams. Long before her role as the CEO of ITHUBA, Charmaine was already breaking boundaries in the business world. She established a name for herself as a director in Wiphold, the first female-owned company to list on the JSE in 1999.
Charmaine Mabuza has displayed remarkable resilience in rising above difficult challenges. She has been praised for her forward-thinking leadership style and ability to handle high-pressure situations, seeking to solve challenges quickly and decisively. She is the driving force behind the formation of ITHUBA. Under her leadership, ITHUBA transformed and changed the narrative of the South African National Lottery.
LEADERSHIP POSITIONS:
• Deputy Chair for the Mpumalanga Provincial University Council
• Former Managing Director of Empilweni Payout Services (Pty) Ltd
• Former Trustee on the Board of GRIP (Greater Rape Intervention Project)
• Former Sheriff of the High Court
• Former member of South African Board for Sheriffs.
AWARDS
• Vision 2030 Top Woman in Education Award for her role in affording access to education for disadvantaged youths.
• Forbes Africa Social Impact Award (2020) for philanthropy through various projects that have uplifted the lives of South Africans from all walks of life.
Ithuba: Enhancing the socio-economic development of South African society
INTERVIEW WITH CHARMAINE MABUZA, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ITHUBA HOLDINGS
Congratulations on winning the Top Empowerment Business Leader of the Year Award 2021. What does winning this headline award mean to you?
I am delighted to be acknowledged for the efforts ITHUBA is making to empower black people and women across all our operations. At ITHUBA we see empowerment as vital to long-term business success, so being named Top Empowerment Business Leader of the Year confirms that our vision is working.
Having black women in leadership positions is nothing new for me. My entrepreneurial spirit was nurtured by my mother, who singlehandedly managed a number of small businesses in KwaZulu Natal. Her dedication inspired me to follow in her tracks. I am proud that ITHUBA is a leader in Africa’s gaming world and especially proud that our success is primarily due to confident black women.
To what do you attribute your success?
We believe that transformation is part and parcel of delivering on our business promise. Within the gaming sector ITHUBA stands out because we have 60% women representation in our executive compared to the industry average of 20%. Our operations are aligned with international best practice and we invest heavily in technology innovation.
Our ITHUBA team has reinvigorated the National Lottery brand and provided more opportunities for players to win life-changing jackpots through a revived game portfolio. Well before the national lockdown we moved the National Lottery to a digital realm. This meant that throughout the various lockdown restrictions that we have faced due to Covid-19, South Africans could continue playing on the National Lottery website, on the Mobile App, and through the digital platforms of our banking partners – Absa, FNB, Standard Bank and Nedbank.
ITHUBA also introduced the groundbreaking Random Number Generator draw system, a new method of drawing lottery numbers, which is now the industry standard. The RNG has a high level of systems security as well as internal and independent audit systems that can verify the complete integrity of lottery draws.
What is your “why”? What excites you about what you do?
There is nothing that excites me more than knowing that I have made a difference to somebody’s life. We provide income-generating opportunities to our small business partners across South Africa and through our selection of games we give all South Africans the chance to increase their wealth.
Our success in expanding the footprint of the National Lottery enhances the socio-economic development of South African society, as we give back approximately 27% of the value of ticket sales to the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund, which disburses the funds to good causes.
In February this year, ITHUBA contributed financial relief to 82 BBEEE-owned businesses across South Africa. A total sum of R15 million in grants was dispersed to beneficiaries of the ITHUBA Supplier and Enterprise Funding Programme, with companies receiving amounts of up to R1.5 million.
The opportunity to run the National Lottery is a privilege that has enabled ITHUBA to give back to the wonderful people of our country.
What have been some of your major milestones – both personal and business?
I have always been convinced that we cannot have a sustainable economy if women and black people remain on the fringes. In 2015, when ITHUBA started operating the National Lottery,I was the only female CEO in the gaming sector. Today, gaming is still heavily male-dominated, so I see transformation as essential.
There were fewer games available to lottery players when ITHUBA started operating the National Lottery. Within 6 years of operation, we have doubled the number of games in the National Lottery portfolio, thanks to our innovative game design team.
Our partnership with all the major banks has strategically expanded access to the National Lottery. Players can now access National Lottery games on their internet platforms. Three years ago, ITHUBA launched the first-ever National Lottery Mobile App. At the same time we mobilised the National Lottery by rolling out 175 000 handheld devices.
Just a year after ITHUBA took over the National Lottery we achieved a significant percentage increase in sales. This made ITHUBA one of the best performing lotteries in the world.
In 2017, the World Lottery Association announced that the South African National Lottery accounted for half of the lottery sales of the entire African continent.
This year, in recognition of our empowerment efforts, ITHUBA prevailed in two categories of the Gender Mainstreaming Awards: Large National Company Positive Role Model Gauteng, and Large National Company Positive Role Model – South Africa. ITHUBA was also a finalist in the Investing in Young Women category. On the global front, ITHUBA was recognized by Gaming Intelligence as Lottery Operator of the Year in Africa, and, as ITHUBA CEO, iGaming Business positioned me among the Top 10 Most Influential Women in Gaming.
From a purely business perspective, what particular challenges have you experienced and how did you solve them?
When ITHUBA started operating the National Lottery, we had to ensure that we address the gender representation gap within the industry which is primarily male-dominated. We had to ensure that we appoint and equal number of female executives compared to our male-counter-parts. This is a global challenge within the gaming industry, and I am pleased to say that within our executive committee, we have 50% female representation.
What differences have your solutions made to your company?
ITHUBA’s ability to keep abreast of innovation and technology advancement has allowed us to expand the footprint of the National Lottery and increase sales. This in turn has meant we have been able to put back substantial amounts into the South African economy and to educate young professionals, develop entrepreneurship, and support women and youth.
When we were awarded the National Lottery contract in 2015, I became the first female CEO in the gaming sector for the whole of Africa and one of the few in the world. From the outset I have made sure that transforming the racial and the gender profile of the gaming sector remains a top priority.
How has COVID affected your business model?
I believe that any business – big or small – should have a continuity plan in place, ready to implement in a time of crisis. We were all caught off guard by COVID-19, but ITHUBA was a jump ahead when the pandemic hit South Africa – we had a strongly flexible team in place, and we had already adopted the innovative technology that enabled us to transition to online gaming. Our players were able to make use of our digital platforms.
Growing online gaming has been one of the best things we have done for the economy. Africa will get a piece of this big pie.
What would you say is your leadership style?
I tend towards a collaborative style. A leader knows how to get the best out of their team and I take the time to know and understand my subject matter experts and encourage them to debate and find solutions that are a win-win for all.
However, when the going is tough I am prepared, as any leader must be, to follow the toughest and loneliest path. And you need to have a strong vision of where you want the business to go. For example, we see ITHUBA opening out further across the African continent.
How do you relax?
I have a very hectic and demanding job as the CEO, so what I value above all is spending time with family over the weekend.
Do you have a message of hope for our readers out there?
While the COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating for our lives and for many people’s livelihoods, we have become more realistic about how to handle it. As a country we have learnt some valuable lessons in how to survive the challenges that it has brought. Now that the government has relaxed the restrictions, our priority should be to re-energise the economy and create more jobs. If we work together with our government, by creating opportunities for more citizens to enter the productive economy, we will be building a better future for ourselves.
