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Dr Mzizana is breaking the mould of women in AfricaThe words of United States President Barack Obama, and that of the co-founder, chairperson and chief executive officer of Apple Inc., Steve Jobs, fuelled the passion of Dr Nondumiso Mzizana to overcome severe obstacles and grow her company, Sikelela, to become the country’s largest equipment supplier to the medical profession. Recently, she received the Businesswomen’s Association Businesswoman of the Year Award (entrepreneurial category).
In nine years, she started her business and grew it to a coveted position as a premier supplier with a major footprint in the continent, servicing public and private sector clients in southern, Central and North Africa.
For instant gratification-seekers and Hollywood worshippers, the bottom line is that Dr Mzizana made a breakthrough when Philips appointed her as its black economic empowerment partner and sole distributor of its high-end medical equipment.
Thanks to its support, she will be able to surpass a R200-million turnover at the end of the 2011/2012 financial year.
Yet, nothing prepared this former graduate – with a South African dentistry degree from the Medical University of South Africa (Medunsa), an honours degree from Stellenbosch University and a master’s from the University of Pretoria – for the stubborn resistance and severe obstacles she would face before fulfilling her life dream.
That is why Dr Mzizana is indebted to the inspiration of Jobs and Obama.
She said that the most inspiring words she has ever heard, came from Jobs: “He said he was convinced that about half of what separates successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.”
Obama’s can-do spirit made Dr Mzizana decide to persevere. “The I-can spirit keeps you going even if you encounter resistance.”
When she started her business, she struggled to secure a loan, as it was a challenge to convince a bank or institution to consider her business plan. Neither were development finance institutions keen to assist her.
There were questions about Dr Mzizana’s ability to pull off her plan and get the business off the ground.
“Banks show absolutely no interest in supporting financial enterprises run by females,” she noted.
Dr Mzizana added that some banks were not even interested in listening to her story or to grant her an interview. Eventually, one bank agreed to give her a R30 000 overdraft.
What irked her, as she told the Sunday Times, were the institutions that the government initiated with the express purpose of financing small businesses, and which are trumpeting their achievements in this area, but showed her the door as quickly as many of the commercial banks had.
“These are organisations that claim to be helping women’s businesses. They are actually not doing that at all,” said Dr Mzizana. “These financial development institutions had unrealistic expectations of funding female entrepreneurs like me.
“Then there is the African culture that restricts women from doing business,” she added. “In this male-dominated patriarchal system, women are expected to look after their families and cook.
“Most men in business don’t want to partner a female, as they are perceived to be inferior by male counterparts.”
Dr Mzizana said there is a glass ceiling in the male-dominated boardrooms, which prevents women from securing directorships; and in her line of business, it is evident why this is the case. “That is because of stereotypes and preconceptions about roles and abilities of women. A key factor is the lack of female leaders acting as role models to the younger generation,” she explained.
“It was very difficult in my business to break even. I had resistance from banks, from development finance institutions. It was even difficult to source quality products from Europe and to become a supplier of note.
“It was equally challenging to convince a pharmaceutical manufacturer to partner a black woman,” she added.
Female entrepreneurs do not solely face cash flow problems. They are also treated on equal footing with large multinationals in terms of labour rules. The stringent regulations require of smaller entrepreneurs to keep on board incompetent employers who do not add value.
“If you fire them, they will go to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration; and you will have to pay extensively in order to get rid of them,” said Dr Mzizana.
The labour regime makes it extremely difficult for small businesses such as hers to employ new staff.
Sometimes you have to keep incompetent or underperforming staff members on your books, even if they are not at work, she noted.
Now, Dr Mzizana puts new staff on probation for six months before employing them.
Women find it increasingly difficult to get business contracts from the government. “You are not trusted enough to do the job,” she commented.
Dr Mzizana referred to a “pull-down syndrome” within government structures. Ultimately, it is the existence of professional jealousy among female leaders in government, who are asking: “Why are you making millions, and not me?”.
She saw a shortage of medical equipment in rural areas in the Eastern Cape, which made her decide to quit her job as lecturer at Medunsa and to pursue the work as supplier.
“The lack of medical and dental supplies is one of the main reasons many professionals are leaving the country,” she said.
Dr Mzizana decided to pursue the challenge because that was her way of fulfilling her destiny: “This is what I was born to do.”
The early signs of her later business passion were seen at school. A performer at Holy Cross High School in Mthatha, she loved selling oranges and sweets during school and dreamt of her own business. (Sunday Times, September 2011)
The young Nondumiso also wanted to become a doctor, but she could not fathom people dying in front of her, so she aborted that dream.
It was an inconspicuous start to Dr Mzizana’s life dream:
Because of the challenges to get access to finance, her company only started making a profit five years ago.
Initially, Dr Mzizana’s overdraft, a R100 000 package she received from Medunsa where she lectured, and financial assistance from her husband, were just about enough to start up her operations.
She started off supplying sutures and skin staplers to state hospitals and clinics.
After four years struggling with profits that were ample enough to keep her business ticking over, Dr Mzizana broke even, she told the Sunday Times.
Then the Philips contract gave Sikelela the breakthrough it required.
“We are the only black-owned company in Africa doing what we do, and we are in a niche market,” said Dr Mzizana. “We are also the only company that supplies the Phillips brand of equipment and the state-of-the-art cardiology devices we stock.”
She now supplies major hospitals in every province, making Sikelela the largest supplier of medical equipment in the country. She believes exceptional service and quality equipment have given her company the edge. (Source: The Herald, August 2011)
“I am very particular about the type of equipment we stock. We only supply quality equipment that has been tried and tested – and basically, the product sells itself,” Dr Mzizana said.
She believed, however, that the government still needed to do more to improve shortages of medical equipment in the rural areas of the Eastern Cape.
“Dental clinics, especially, are not well equipped, and dentists are struggling and are frustrated. This is one of the reasons many of them are leaving the country,” Dr Mzizana told The Herald. “I can only hope that the National Health Insurance can improve the situation.”
Her mother, Nokuzuka Barbara, an educationist; and her father, Nkosemntu, a lecturer at Zululand University and later Fort Hare, were inspirational figures.
“My mother was an incredible motivator. She always emphasised the importance that education comes first. She was a pillar of strength throughout our lives,” said Dr Mzizana. “And she also conveyed values that stayed with us, like not having children out of wedlock.”
She believed other female entrepreneurs like her could be successful, but the business community, financial institutions and the government needed to create a platform that would allow successful entrepreneurial spirits – male or female – to encourage, motivate and inspire new entrepreneurs.
Big corporates could join hands in making this happen. Such a forum would highlight the problems that entrepreneurs have in accessing funds from development institutions that make one wait for months, sometimes years, to secure start-up cash.
Dr Mzizana, her husband and three sons live life to the full. She enjoys spinning classes at the gym to get her mind off work, and also enjoys social tennis. The family loves quad biking.
And when they go on holiday, it would be to one of two destinations: New York, particularly during Christmas time; or Switzerland, for a ski holiday.
If she had advice to entrepreneurs, it would be to become a hedgehog that is focused: “You cannot be a master of all,” said Dr Mzizana.
“Importantly, when you do secure financial support, you have to build your business properly first and spend your cash smartly. Don’t abuse it on buying luxuries, cars and homes.”
If she had 10 minutes on national television with the women of South Africa, she would inspire them to reach for their dream, never to fear failure, to persist, to employ the right people. They must be passionate about what they do, and they must give back to society.
Dr Mzizana has a staff of 25 and is looking forward to increasing that to hundreds. She does not tolerate laziness in the workplace, and encourages each staff member to study extensively and to complete a degree. She gives them as much exposure as possible to travel in Europe.
It is a challenging and sometimes frustrating experience to invest money in training workers to become good sales representatives, simply to see them poached by larger companies that have incentives to fill employment equity quotas.
Unfortunately, Dr Mzizana cannot match their perks or their purses, and has to let the employees go because of the higher salaries and even company cars such as BMWs that are offered at the big corporates. Yet, she persists and perceives it as her duty to empower other women in the workplace, as long as they are passionate, competent as well as hard-working.
“I want to create many more jobs. But in order to succeed, I wish to bring in investors to create more manufacturing plants, as there are no black-owned pharmaceutical plants in South Africa,” Dr Mzizana said in closing.
Fanie Heyns
