Palesa Moloi has joined Philip Morris South Africa as director of people & culture.
According to Palesa, the decision to join Philip Morris South Africa was shaped by the people and leadership she encountered.
“What stood out most to me was the passion leaders had for the business and for its people. I bought into the vision, the intent and the authenticity of the people I met throughout the process, rather than simply the job description itself. Philip Morris has also reignited my passion and reminded me why I entered the people and culture profession in the first place,” she says.
“What also excites me most about the role is both the challenge and the opportunity to make a meaningful impact at a larger scale. This role aligns with who I am and where I feel I am supposed to be in my career right now. I am energised by the opportunity to help shape an environment where people thrive and where employees feel inspired to work for Philip Morris.”
In her first year, Palesa plans to focus on understanding the organisation, building trust and learning from the people around her before introducing significant changes.
“I want to take people on the journey with me, encouraging teams to look at the world through a different lens and rethink how solutions are designed so that they are fit-for-purpose for the people and culture of Philip Morris South Africa.”
As the new culture architect, she hopes to nurture a culture built on curiosity, critical thinking, inclusion and genuine care for people.
“I believe every role in an organisation matters equally. I often compare organisations to a human body where every part plays a critical role in overall success. I want people to feel seen, valued and connected to the broader purpose of the business. I also believe in listening with intent, collaborating meaningfully and creating solutions informed by people’s lived realities and experiences, rather than applying one-size-fits-all approaches.”
Having worked across several African markets, Palesa believes those experiences taught her the importance of adapting approaches to different cultures and contexts.
Before joining Philip Morris South Africa, Moloi spent three years at Ipsos as cluster HR director for Southern & East Africa. Prior to that, she held several HR leadership roles at Tiger Brands, including HR manager for supply chain centre of excellence & grains; portfolio HR manager and enablement; HR manager for customer and Tiger Brands International; and HR manager for the grains division.
Her earlier career included roles at The Forum Company as HR manager, Macmillan Education South Africa as HR business partner, and at Unilever and Nature’s Choice as HR officer.
She started her HR career as HR administrator at the City of Johannesburg.
Academically, Palesa studied industrial and organisational psychology through Unisa, earned a BCom from the University of the Witwatersrand, and studied HR management at the University of Johannesburg.
