I was born and raised in Durban, which is why when I really want to play, we pack up and drive to the coast. I simply love the ocean.
Approximately 12 years ago, I moved to JHB. Today, I live in Magaliessig and work at Collective ID, an ad agency. As the MD, I’m basically responsible for running the company.
I survived three Vodacom summer campaigns – 2013, 2014 and 2015.
Jessica Tennant 27 Nov 2018
Anyone who has worked in telecoms will understand what a huge challenge that can be – it’s one of the biggest campaigns of the year.
My career in advertising has been in the making for over 13 years, and what an incredible journey it has been! I’ve worked with amazing mentors, clients and people. My journey has been about hard work, feeding my passion and learning about myself.
I’ve always believed in letting your work speak for itself; keeping your head down and just doing your job to the absolute best of your abilities.In my opinion, relationships are everything, so my recipe for success is to be fair, honest and hard-working.
I’m a passionate person, and when I’m passionate about something, I obsess about it:
6. Describe your average workday, if such a thing exists.
My days are mostly made up of meetings and solving problems. But that’s the most exciting element – I never know how my day will start or end.
8. Who is getting it right in your industry?
Without sounding biased, I feel our company is at the forefront of the transformation agenda in the industry.
Gender equality. There have been numerous reports around the gender equality topic, but to me, the most interesting one was the McKinsey&Company annual report ‘Power of Parity’ in 2015, on how advancing women parity can drive and contribute towards global growth.
Yet, in 2019, women are still under-represented. I feel that gender equality needs to be a priority, so we need to change the way we do things: The way we hire, as well as how we identify female talent, train, support, mentor and promote it.
I’m in the process of submitting our nominations for three females in the company to attend a female leadership programme.
We are also about to launch two big campaigns – coming soon!
‘Debrief’ and ‘reverts’ – because we are in-between campaigns, which is why I’m constantly hearing those words from the teams.
My catchphrases are ‘let’s kill them with kindness’ or ‘activate the beast’ to motivate myself and the team to push through challenging times.
To be honest, it’s mostly at night, when I’m working at home – and when everyone in the house is asleep.
I love to sing. I used to sing when I was younger, but it’s still a hidden talent of mine…
I’m no technology expert, but I’m very ‘for’ it. I believe the world is moving towards digital, so it’s better to get on board.
You’d find that I have over 10 WhatsApp groups. My team and I have a WhatsApp group for every project we are working on. You’d also find lots of pics of my little daughter.
Keep pushing, take the opportunities you are given (no matter how small or big) and fly with them. Above all, work hard and always be kind.
Simple as that. Follow Khumalo on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; and visit the Collective ID press office, as well as their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram feeds for the latest updates.
*Interviewed by Leigh Andrews.
