When Nomfundo Vilakazi accepted the HR role at Dis-Chem Pharmacies, she was seven months pregnant, carrying not only the anticipation of new life but also the weight of a new professional chapter. She is now focused on reshaping the entire people and culture strategy at the second-largest retail pharmacy chain in South Africa, starting from scratch.
On the verge of going on maternity leave, Nomfundo was excited to step into a new role as organisational development head at Dis-Chem Pharmacies and embark on what felt like a second childbirth. While most would be slowing down, she was tasked with giving life to a people function that barely existed and nurture a culture of growth.
“Two months in, we delivered job grading, delivered our values and went through an audit – and then I went on maternity leave. I came back in January and by March, it was Covid. People still needed to be paid and, unfortunately, we lost soldiers along the way, being an essential services business, because a couple of people contracted Covid and didn’t make it.”
After climbing up the ladder at the company in various roles, Nomfundo admits that taking over the people function as people and culture director came with challenges, like any new journey, but she is always optimistic and prefers to focus on the end state and what it will look like at the end.
“It was a big shift for us. We needed to remind the people that we’ve moved on, that we needed to heal, close the door on the past and move forward together. For me, the biggest part was helping everyone switch mentally and reminding them we have a seat at the table now. Getting everyone to really believe that was the biggest work.”
Her focus now is on reshaping the entire people and culture strategy at Dis-Chem, starting from scratch. “The result is a shift from personnel management to people strategy. We’ve rebranded from HR to people and culture, and I’ve started crafting a people and culture playbook. It’s really about redefining what the people space stands to deliver in our organisation,” she says.
Filling critical gaps
“The new playbook is built around several key pillars: talent excellence, operational agility, culture leadership, strategic partnering and community impact. I’m investing in my team’s capability, so that everyone in the people and culture space understands the playbook. We are looking at the gaps and closing them.”
She noted leadership as one critical gap that needs to be filled as she pushes for a different approach.
“We’ve never invested in management and leadership capabilities. We’re about seven years old as a function in Dis-Chem and all we did before was foundational work, so nobody was thinking about how our managers should lead,” she elaborates.
“I believe we need to lead people with purpose. We haven’t called it the Dis-Chem Way, but are defining something unique that’s different from how things need to get done. We exist to make sure we provide quality healthcare at the lowest price point. That means our impact reaches the mass market as well, where accessible, good quality healthcare is needed, not only those in the cities.”
This leadership overhaul, she reiterated, isn’t just for senior leaders but for all 22,000+ employees, which also includes long-term investments in future talent.
“We are experiencing a shortage of representation among nurses and pharmacists from designated groups. Instead of just investing at the tertiary level, our approach is to build future pipeline strategies that are forward-thinking and directly aligned to Dis-Chem’s growth agenda. We are intentionally creating awareness, education and opportunities by engaging high school learners early – positioning Dis-Chem’s growth roles as aspirational career paths. To sustain our business strategy, we must, as people experts, think beyond the present and that’s the heart of our community impact pillar.”
Empowering people
For her, putting in all this work is due to her belief in making people and culture more than just about payroll and policy.
“People will always be paid,” she adds. “But what rewards structures do you unlock to drive people retention, defining a value proposition that will make us different?” That question sparked her partnership with X, bigly labs, Dis-Chem’s internal innovation hub and engine.
“It’s our accelerator hub to futureproof healthcare for our country. We’re working on a digitisation roadmap so our employees have access to information at their fingertips, not buried in an intranet somewhere. The goal is to make the experience so seamless and empowering that people love working here, that they choose Dis-Chem.”
When asked what’s working, Nomfundo mentions being given the opportunity to redesign a people space that never existed. “What’s beautiful is building on top of nothing because then you become the benchmark, but not alone. For me to reach 22,000 people, I need to invest enough time in partnering with the senior leadership team, to lead with purpose and deliver better. Through them, we touch everyone else.”
That includes a diverse employee base that they have spanning four generations, so she believes it’s about honouring the old while building the new.
“Retailers are traders at heart. You see it in how they walk and speak. There’s a rich knowledge we want to always preserve and pass on because we’re not building for today, we’re building for the next 48 years.”
Given Dis-Chem’s positioning in health and wellness, she also highlights how that translates into internal wellbeing programmes for employees. “We’ve partnered with Kaelo for medical insurance. Employees get store discounts plus extra discounts through our eXtra rewards programme. Honestly, you pay next to nothing,” she adds.
Nomfundo confirmed that it takes a special skin to be in retail, regardless of where you are, but finds fulfilment in being given the opportunity to shift the game.
“Its been amazing redesigning a people space that never existed in this business, not just for me, but for the 130+ heroes in the people and culture team. It’s the opportunity to design something completely new. I joined this business because there was an opportunity to build and that’s why I’m still here. I want us to move together.”
