The 2025 Executive Communities Women’s Dinner did not just fill The Maslow Hotel in Sandton with executives, but also with the kind of energy that only comes when women from three of South Africa’s most powerful communities come together.
Women from the CHRO, CFO, and CIO communities gathered in numbers to explore the theme Mastering the art of impact in times of change.
It didn’t take long before that impact could be felt in the room, as Naspers CEO Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa opened the event with a keynote address that set the tone for the evening.
“As women, we do tend to lead with more empathy and authenticity, and we focus on building trust that strengthens teams. We balance decisive action with thoughtful consideration of the impact of those actions, and we’ve seen this in action. You’re mothers and industry changers, not only in your homes but in the organisations you lead as well,” she said.
She continued to speak about authentic leadership, urging women to embrace their voice and impact.
“Leadership does not need permission because if you're going to be seeking permission, you're going to be waiting for a long time. But it is about having that ability to influence, to guide, and to really provide real inspiration to teams and engage with people in a meaningful way. But doing so requires you to be willing to share a bit of where you are as well. So that they can share a bit of who they are, because we’re all with people, and we need to be able to engage just as people,” she added.
“Whether it’s a team of two or 2,000 people, whether you’re in a private organisation, a public service organisation, or an NGO, your leadership matters.”
The evening’s panel discussion brought together Njabulo Mashigo, executive director of HR at Vodacom SA; Rebecca Pole, CFO at NTT Data; and Sandra La Bella, independent IT executive, to speak about how to align talent, technology and capital for impact.
“If we don’t engage with our people and partner with the tech changes happening, we won’t be able to compete because everyone can copy a strategy, but the real distinction between an organisation is its people. People always have to be first. I don't think you can ever define success when people are not at the core and at the centre of what you do,” stated Njabulo.
This was followed by an interactive session led by consciousness and recovery coach Sam Cowen. She opened up the conversation about the invisible emotional labour and unacknowledged contributions women often make, especially in male-dominated workspaces.
However, this year’s evening didn’t stop with the women, as a few invitations were extended to three senior male executives across HR, IT and finance for a raw and honest Q&A segment called Ask a Man.
Stepping into the spotlight to answer the uncomfortable questions women often ask themselves behind closed doors were Joseph Rock, chief people & performance officer at Exxaro; Paul Stedall, CFO at King Price Insurance; and Dr Stanley Mpofu, CIO at Wits University.
In response to a question about which feminine energy trait he would bring to his role if he could, Joseph stated, “Societal and organisational pressures suggest you need to be one way or the other as a man. People expect me to show up according to stereotypes, and I don’t.”
“I’ve leant on something a coach of mine said years ago: good leaders show up with both. So I leverage both the strengths generally regarded as traits women have, like nurturing and caring, and the strengths typically associated with men. I've found that when I bring that as my authentic self, people respond to it. So I say, bring the real you, bring the full you, and show both the heart and the head.”
Many women commended the men for being brave for showing up, sitting down, and joining a panel where tough conversations on gender equity were long overdue. Questions from the floor extended from inclusion to asking if men are aware of their privileges, to understanding if there is a man code similar to the girl code that accommodates women.
“Why is there a man code? Why is it that the woman in the boardroom feels bullied, ignored, or talked over? Why does she have to fight just to finish her point? Is there a code among men that we don’t know about? Let us in,” were some of the questions echoing from the floor.
As the night drew to a close, conversations continued over dessert, drinks, and laughter, with extended networking and the clinking of glasses confirming newfound connections.
The night was made possible by principal partners Cassava Technologies, Entelect, Huawei, iOCO, MakwaIT, Marsh, Old Mutual South Africa, and Regenesys Education, and executive partners Anchor Capital, BDO South Africa, Coupa, Discovery Limited, Equinix, FranklinCovey, HCLTech, LRMG, STANLIB, and Workday.
