Company Announcement - GIBB is a South African success story, but competing in a multi-national space comes with its challenges. Bringing broad strategic perspective to the 900-employee-strong firm is recently appointed Non-Executive Director to GIBB Holdings Board, Nomaxabiso Majokweni. According to her, the sub-sector of the infrastructure space that GIBB plays in tends to be dominated by foreign-owned firms, and competition is therefore extremely tough, given its sizable resources and global reach. She indicated that GIBB's continued participation and growth in this particular sub-sector will not be guaranteed exclusively by its proven track record.

“Strategic partnerships and acquisitions as well as involvement in a localisation drive with relevant stakeholders are other key strategies to deal with this challenge,” she said. To this end, GIBB announced a 70% acquisition into leading architectural firm, SVA International, further diversifying its multi-disciplinary offering. Majokweni needs little introduction to the South African business fraternity and held various key leadership positions that included COO of Blue IQ, where she played a hands-on role in the conceptualisation, scoping, rolling out, institutionalisation and commercialisation of a series of multi-billion rand projects for the Gauteng Province.

As CEO of Business Unity South Africa she led the South African private sector involvement in strategic infrastructure projects that are part of the National Infrastructure Plan. Majokweni also played a similar role for the South African private sector in the North South Corridor infrastructure projects in Africa, an initiative led by President Jacob Zuma. As a member of the BRICS Business Council, she identified infrastructure projects to be led by South Africa and its African partners as well as those, to be incorporated with fellow BRICS infrastructure players. “I have known and been positively impressed with GIBB's work over time and it was therefore quite easy for me to accept to be part of the firm's board when the opportunity came about.” “To me, and I know to the rest of the industry, GIBB personifies the ideal professional infrastructure planning firm rooted locally but with the professional competence, market knowledge and disciplined project execution that places the firm on par with the best globally,” she said.

Majokweni’s role entails ensuring good corporate governance; providing leadership in the formulation of broad policy directions of the firm and giving strategic support to the executive management in ensuring that the firm is anchored on a sound business strategy. “I also bring with me knowledge and experience in corporate governance and business strategy planning,” said Majokweni.
Majokweni stresses that infrastructure development is the backbone of industrial development and remains a determiner for economic growth and social development. “With this in mind and the fact that some of the fastest growing economies are now in Africa, infrastructure development presents huge growth prospects for GIBB. It is my vision therefore to see GIBB playing a leading infrastructure planning role in the continent and being recognised as such. I will provide the necessary strategic support to ensure this vision is achieved,” she said.

Growth must be sustainable though and as a black-owned firm, committed to the principles of economic transformation, Majokweni feels that GIBB already has a good foundation of a sustainable and responsible firm. “The board has a pivotal role in ensuring that these principles continue to define the quality of GIBB's growth into the future.” Majokweni added that operating in South Africa; you will quickly learn that the relationship between black economic empowerment and business success is not an inverse one.

“GIBB is a glowing example of a highly competent black-owned firm. Black economic empowerment is not a cost to business, instead, it is what all sustainable firms need to be mindful of in their operating environment, and should adopt as an essential element of its growth plan,” she said.