Frank Magwegwe, Segment CEO: Momentum Business division talks to us about starting at the bottom and rising to the top.
I finished school in1999 and went on to study BSc in Statistics and Actuarial Science at Wits University.
My first job was as a barman at Kirkwood Hotel where I got paid R300 per month.
Now I am the Segment CEO of the middle-market business at Momentum. Since this is a start-up my responsibilities include everything about the business: operations, marketing, strategy, building the company culture, human resources and sales. In summary, my main responsibilities are setting strategy and vision and managing my leadership team.
I was headhunted by Momentum in 2010 for the position of CEO: Momentum Administration Services. I was moved into my current position in September 2012 to establish the new middle-market business.
Some of the challenges I face is that work gets done through people, and people are profoundly affected by culture. Most of my challenges revolve around people: recruiting the right individuals, keeping them engaged through meaningful work and building high performing teams. I overcome these challenges through using my industry networks for recruitment, leading by example and spending a significant portion of time with our people in one-on-one and team meetings, and sharing our business purpose of enhancing the financial wellness of South Africa’s middle-income consumers.
What I love most about my job is the ability to create and influence the company culture, vision products and solutions, adding value to our clients and training new financial advisers.
What kind of personality does one need to survive in your industry?
Retail insurance is part of the large financial services industry and is therefore home to many types of personalities. For my type of role, the most important trait is being a good leader since part of my job is to lead employees. Having the courage to make tough decisions, willingness to take risks, having good judgement and being comfortable working in fast-paced and ever-changing industry are the other traits.
If anyone would like to do what you do, what advice would you give them?
Be passionate about people and about serving them. Have a high self-awareness, good communication skills, read broadly, be willing to say “the buck stops with me” and invest in continual self-development.
