Full Name: Ufikile Khumalo

Position: Executive chairperson of Scaw Metals Group since February 2013 and president of the Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of South Africa

Main Activity of the Company: Niche steel manufacture, including grinding media, rolled products, cast products and wire-rod products, as well as scrap processing

Date and Place of Birth: February 5, 1966, Pretoria

Education: Hofmeyr Secondary School, Atteridgeville, matric, 1982; T2 electrical engineering, Technikon Northern Transvaal, 1985; BSc (electrical and electronic engineering), University of Cape Town (UCT), 1989; MSc (electrical engineering), UCT, 1992; Brown University scholarship, 1992; Management Advancement Programme, Wits Business School, 1995; Senior Executive Programme, Harvard Business School, 2003; Advanced Management Programme, INSEAD, 2009 Executive chairperson Scaw Metals Group since February 2013 and President of the Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of South Africa

First Job: Engineer in training, Sasol, 1993

Size of First Pay Packet: R3 000 a month

Value of Assets under Your Control: Scaw turns over R7-billion to R8-billion a year

Number of People under Your Leadership: 7 000 including contractors and nearly 6 000 own employees

Management Style: Participatory and consultative – I lead from the front and the back

Personal Best Achievement: Eskom Manager’s Award for Team Building, 1994; Eskom Manager’s Award for Improvement and Innovation, 1994; Best Divisional Executive Award, Industrial Development Corporation, 2009

Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on Your Life: Mahatma Gandhi

Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on Your Career: Geoffrey Qhena

Person You Would Most Like to Meet: Barack Obama

Businessperson Who Has Impressed You Most: Steve Jobs

Philosophy of Life: I am what I am today because of the choices I made yesterday

Biggest Ever Opportunity: Working for the IDC

Biggest Ever Disappointment: The death of my father

Hope for the Future: That early childhood development is improved and that there are greater opportunities for our children

Favourite Reading: Psycho-Cybernetics, by Maxwell Maltz, and self-help and philosophy books

Favourite TV Programme: The news

Favourite Food/Drink: Oxtail, salmon and red wine

Favourite Music: Jazz

Favourite Sport: Golf

Hobbies: Chess, travelling, wildlife, reading philosophical books

Car: BMW

Pets: A Maltese poodle and a Jack Russell terrier

Miscellaneous Dislikes: Lack of initiative and direction

Married: To Winnie (née Nhlapo) for 21 years

Children: Sonwabo, 19; Thembelihle, 16

Clubs: Blue Valley Golf and Country Estate, Midrand

Membership: Registered professional engineer, Engineering Council of South Africa, 1994 to 1999