Duke Mgaga, CPO for Parliament of South Africa, fosters a people-first culture. He says the human capital strategy should be an enabling one and cannot work in isolation.
Parliament is not just an institution, this is a hope for South Africa, this is a hope for Africa. We need to demonstrate and create that hope with the work that we do. This is according to Duke Mgaga, chief people office for South Africa’s legislative authority, Parliament.
And it is this hope that is the cornerstone of his commitment to fostering a people-first culture that supports the critical work of shaping the nation’s policies and governance.
“In my role, I lead HR strategy and operations for one of South Africa’s most prestigious institutions, ensuring alignment between the Parliament’s people practices and its constitutional mandate. My work focuses on talent management, compensation and benefits, workforce planning, employee engagement, culture change management, organisational design, employee relations, management of employee wellness programmes, and initiatives that reflect South Africa’s rich and diverse society,” he explains.
He is in the final stages of his executive doctorate and holds an executive MBA from Business School Netherlands and a degree in HR management from Durban University of Technology under his belt, Duke has more than 20 years of HR experience. His career spans various industries including oil and gas, manufacturing, engineering, as well as property management, with stints at Shell, Alstom and Momentum (MHG).
“I had a brief stint in the UK, stationed in London. This was the time when Shell was preparing to set up its new business venture, commonly known back in 2009 in South Africa as a fracking business, which is the core business of an oil and gas company – to extract your natural gas, oil from the sea,” he explains.
From Shell, he moved to Alstom.
A big shift
“I joined Alstom as their Southern Africa HR director. So, it was an interesting big scope of work. We decided at global level to diversify, so the energy sector was then sold back to General Electric. At that time, back in 2015, my role had changed a little bit. It then included a component of corporate affairs, so I became the executive director for human capital as well as corporate affairs. Corporate affairs was an interesting new era in my career. I had to learn and deliver at the same time,” he says.
During that time, Alstom also signed a contract to supply passenger trains to South Africa. “So, we had just won the contract to develop and manufacture these lovely blue trains that are moving between the cities in South Africa. From a human capital point of view, I had to support the ramp up of the business through talent acquisition, I had to find relevant skill sets and competencies that could be nurtured around the manufacturing of trains.”
He moved on to his own consulting firm where he became an independent human capital consultant, which he did for four years. Duke briefly rejoined corporate as acting human capital executive for property group Pareto, before joining Parliament in August 2024.
Coming from an engineering and manufacturing background with a bit of financial services, moving to Parliament was a big shift. “This is a knowledge management based type of institution, it’s not driven by any profit, no profit margins are required but we have to spend the taxpayers money very wisely to ensure that we enhance the work of Parliament to ensure that we impact the society. So, I think from the pace point of view it’s a bit slower, compared to my previous background. But it challenges you to think out of your box,” he says.
For Duke, Parliament has two components: a corporate component and also a political wing and arm. “Firstly it requires resilience. The human capital function, its processes and tools have not been refreshed for many years. We’re lagging behind the market. So this is the challenge that I took on, to revitalise the human capital, to bring in the best practices, to transform processes, to integrate innovations and AI into it. To look for new skills, the world has changed, so we need to acquire those skills from the market,” Duke explains.
And as the country enters its seventh parliament, there is a big drive towards change, he added. “It’s very dynamic, it brings its own different challenges. There is a new leadership on board, the secretary to Parliament, who is driving a big change agenda and human capital is a driver of this change as well. So when I say change agenda, I am referring to the refreshing of policies, we’re looking into making a big cultural shift, moving from the ‘as is’ culture into a desired culture which is a value-driven, value-based culture,” he adds.
Making an impact
Born and bred in Durban, Duke is the youngest of three siblings. “My mother was a school teacher, a disciplinarian of note! My father worked in a factory environment, and he was a shop steward,” he said.
Duke, who is married with three children, is an avid cyclist. “I’ve done two great cycling races, the winelands race 104 kms, and the 99-er cycle tour, [a seeding event for the Cape Town Cycle tour] which is about 99 kms. I’ve been cycling since 2007, so cycling is part of my life, it defines my lifestyle. It’s one space I use to destress. I also use it as a thinking process to navigate through topics I need to deal with.”
In terms of a legacy and the impact he would like to make, Duke says, “I would like to be remembered as someone who has contributed in an impactful way in the development of people’s careers, and their lives. As [businessman and author] Bonang Mohale would say, ‘Lift As You Rise’.”
He adds, “What inspires me is the impactful results that impacts the business positively. In our case in Parliament it’s the impact both internally and externally, which is the society and the broader South Africa. That inspires me. That as we craft our strategies, those strategies should impact ordinary South Africans. People, they must see hope, they must be hopeful, about the future of the country when they think about Parliament, our work must impact communities.”
