Leading from the Heart

Carina Spangenberg is the epitome of determination through adversity, overcoming each challenge in her career with grace and grit, and has now united her passion for both finance and design in her position as head of finance at Ideas Cartel.

Empowering Africa’s Informal Retailers

Returning to his home of Kenya, Douglas Tuva, decided to take the plunge and move from corporate companies to a startup, where he is CFO at Kyosk Digital Services, connecting informal retailers directly to fast-moving consumer goods by leveraging a tech platform.

‘A great businessman is not necessarily the best entrepreneur.’

Always enticed to look for new opportunities, Francois Herbst started his first business at the age of 15, this maverick entrepreneur then went on to establish a host of other businesses over the years, now including House of Growth where, amongst other services, he has a passion for coaching entrepreneurs.

A&O Aims to be the Most Advanced Law Firm

Averen Deonanan’s career spans 14 years across a variety of industries, which has led him to be head of finance at Allen & Overy, one of the world’s most prestigious law firms, now at the forefront of introducing new client-centric technology to the African market.

Working Above the Waterline

James Vanreusel spent many years working in finance in New York and California before launching his own CFO and corporate consultancy in San Francisco, and with a lot of capital floating around in the Bay Area, his consultancy has seen quite a big inflow of potential clients.

‘I never regret any decision I make.’

A man of integrity with a depth of experience, particularly in the non-profit sector, Kevin Woolward highlights the challenges of the past year for the South African Dental Association and provides some invaluable advice for up-and-coming accountants.

‘I am a mix of banking experience, enterprise experience and public sector experience.’

Emmanuel Millard has had an illustrious career, gaining experience at some of the world’s most foremost financial institutions and then moving into the public sector to serve his country, now recently elected as President of the National Association of Finance Executives, he shares some fascinating insights of his career journey.

Passionate About People and Making a Difference

Johnathan Dillon heads up JDCV Consult, with services ranging from corporate finance consulting to funding great entrepreneurial ideas. Through his passion for people and teaching he aims to unlock the potential that we have in South Africa from people being doers to value adders.

‘I was one of those crazy people who loved auditing.’

Tina Maharaj lives by the maxim, adapt and thrive, this tenacity and a flare for accounting has led her through a dynamic career to CFO at the SABS, where her current focus is on the financial turnaround of one of the world’s leading providers of standards.

‘SA Needs More Business-Focused CFOs’

A passion for numbers, people and retail drives the innovative thinking of Douglasdale Dairy’s CFO, Bradley Wentzel. Now this studious executive is embarking on a new challenge to complete his doctorate, with particular focus on reducing wastage in the food supply chain.

‘If you want to succeed, you have to be curious.’

Matthieu Rivart is the consummate CFO (SA), this Frenchman’s passion for Africa has enabled him to adapt with agility to business on the continent and lead teams across seven countries in Africa as CFO for Brands Consumer Group.

‘I think public trust is key.’

Tasked with turning the proverbial ship around at KPMG, Ignatius Sehoole, is doing so, having replaced senior management and instilled a culture of trust and integrity, the firm has now regained distinguished clients and is the first of the big four to no longer offer non-audit services to audit clients.

From Raw Survival to Success

Orphaned and the sole breadwinner at the age of 14, Khaya Gcobo has risen above every challenge to successfully work his way up to Financial Director at CirroConnect, he shares his remarkable journey with CFO Talks.

Verimark’s Sagacious FD

Responsible for quadrupling Verimark’s share price over a three-year period, Bryan Groome also achieved a substantial tax saving for the company within his first three months on the job. He is committed to active involvement in all business operations to ensure business efficiency and profitability.

A Winning Strategy to Work for Winning Companies

Prosperity Zondi always aimed to work for some of the most elite companies and through hard work and determination, she achieved her goal. Now this finance executive has a love for technology and a heart for giving back to her community.