Full Name: Nhlanhla Zondo

Position and Company Name: Executive director at Power Process Systems (PPS)

Main Activity of the Company: PPS specialises in the design, manufacture and switchgear-wiring of electrical enclosures and distribution equipment, distribution and metering kiosks, freestanding and modular distribution panels, steel enclosures of transformers, mini-substations and batteries, fibreglass and polyethylene pole-mount and ground-mount enclosures and other customised solutions supplied to electricity utilities (Eskom and municipalities), industrial and commercial developments and applications in South Africa and other countries in the Southern African Development Community region

Date and Place of Birth: I am a New Year’s baby, born in Johannesburg

Schools and Tertiary Education: I matriculated at Inkamana High School, in Vryheid, KwaZulu-Natal, and graduated with a BSc Electrical Engineering from the University of Cape Town, a BCom from the University of South Africa, an MBA from the University of Pretoria and an MPhil from the University of the Witwatersrand

First Job: Design and project engineer at Sasol

Size of First Pay Packet: It must have been around R5 000 a month

Career Path to Date: After my engineering training at Sasol, I joined Eskom, where I held various roles, including managing network operations and maintenance, power station optimisation, and supply chain management. Thereafter, I joined EDI Holdings as GM for one of its six regions, mainly involved in project management. After 18 years in the corporate world, my brother and I started our own business, Msebe Holdings, with diverse investments in the retail, energy and healthcare sectors

Value of Assets under Your Control: Around R200-million

Number of People under Your Leadership: 170

Management Style: Participative leadership, with the main focus on managing outputs

Personal Best Achievement: Starting my own successful business shortly after I was retrenched from my last job

Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on Your Life: My mother – she taught me the true value of hard work, patience and perseverance

Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on Your Career: There have been quite a few individuals along my career journey

Person You Would Most Like to Meet: Bill Gates and Gary Player (on the sporting side)

Businessperson Who Has Impressed You Most: Discovery co-founder and CEO Adrian Gore

Philosophy of Life: No pain, no gain

Biggest Ever Opportunity: Being the father to my children and realising the huge responsibility of nurturing them

Biggest Ever Disappointment: Selling my first residential property below market value three months before the biggest property boom in this country, in the early 2000s

Hope for the Future: That one day all our children will walk freely in the streets of South Africa without any fear or threat of crime

Favourite Reading: Books by Canadian writer, speaker and leadership expert Robin Sharma

Favourite TV Programme: Carte Blanche

Favourite Food/Drink: Pasta and chicken, with a glass of sauvignon blanc

Favourite Music: R&B, soul and gospel

Favourite Sport: Golf and football

Hobbies: Jogging, reading and travelling

Car: Audi

Pets: None

Miscellaneous Dislikes: People who are lazy and are forever complaining

Clubs: Woodhill Country Club