Lenah Sithole’s journey to becoming the Operations Director of Worldwide Sports did not come overnight as her story remains a classic tale of starting from the bottom and working her way to the top of the pile.
Being a daughter of a domestic worker brought about many financial difficulties but as a family that strived for a better life, both Sithole’s mother and aunt used the little that they had to help fund her studies to ensure that one day her offspring would be able to have a more stable upbringing then she did.
“My mother and my aunt Poppy provided for me with a domestic workers salary, made sure that I completed my matric and paid for my secretarial course. Being raised by a single parent living in the backyard of Mr and Mrs Jarman, we later moved to Diepsloot in shack living conditions where it was unbearable that I made a promise that as soon as I got a job, I will buy my mum a house,” she said.
Staying true to her words, Sithole eventually fulfilled her dream buying a home for her mother and siblings after her hard work started to pay off.
“The dream sufficed, and I managed to buy my mum a house at Ebony Park that was the best moment in our life. My mum is always there for me to babysit my kids when I need to work or study, to guide me and give endless love. My brother and my sister always have my back with everything. The role of being an elderly sister was to provide for my siblings with my very first job, and make sure that they had shelter, education, food and clothing.”
In 2005, she went on to join Worldwide Sports and as the saying goes; the rest is history.
“I started working for Worldwide Sports as an Operations Administrator in May 2005, during that time it was difficult to adjust to the company and the busy environment, working in a male-dominated industry. For a week I had contemplated if I made a wise move but, here I am 14 years later.
“As soon as I understood the dynamics and challenges, that always motivated me to be better and do more with continuous learning and gaining experience from all different aspects of the company and the industry as a whole. It was different from the previous companies that I worked for – Babcock Engineering and Genesis Africa, respectively.”
Sithole feels that over the years the challenges that she has faced are no different as compared to the ones that her male colleagues have encountered. “Challenges that I faced being a woman in this industry are no less than challenges faced by men as everything has been work related and nothing personal. The industry itself is highly pressurising due to the fact that we have to deliver world class service. I have never taken the challenges from the male counterpart in any other way than building myself to be stronger and a learning curve.”
“The courage and support kept me going and made it all possible.” – Lenah Sithole
Although she might have had the strength to deal with her challenges at hand, at times it felt as though she had taken on too much on her plate. “There were times that I thought probably I had bit off more than I can chew as I used to work late nights and early mornings to catch up with work as well as my studies and taking care of the family. But, everyone around me made the journey fun and the load lighter, although a lot of work had to be done as an individual, but the courage and support kept me going and made it all possible.”
The support that she has continuously had resulted in her being promoted to Operations Director of WWS, which she still pinches herself about. “The appointment to be WWS Operations Director came as a shock! I still don’t believe that its true. It brings lots of mixed feelings; excitement and fear, I have always believed and trusted my instinct that I am destined for bigger things, but when it finally happened I felt as if it’s too soon, what made it easy for me is that I love what I do and have been preforming the roles prior to the appointment and 14 years’ experience with the industry.
“The hard work and determination and all the support that I got from everyone mentioned and many more that I haven’t mentioned as the list is endless, it takes a village to raise a child, and a lot of money to fund my studies from WWS alone would have being unachievable. The journey still continues as I challenge myself to be better every day to keep up with the latest changes, especially technologically.”
One person who believes that Sithole deserves every bit of her success is owner and founder, Nick Rabjohn who has seen her growing from strength to strength since her first appointment.
“Lenah is one of the most committed and driving people I have met. She continues to improve herself in all aspects. Her role from Admin assistant to Ops Director is proof of that. She took on studies at the same time as working and being a mother and wife. No small feat! In addition to developing her academic skills, via studies, her interpersonal skills have developed organically and are a key aspect of her brilliance in her role.”
As he continued, he pointed out that the team that Sithole heads up is mainly filled with males who had had been at the company long before she came along.
“She heads up the Operations and the team she works with are all males most of who have been at WWS before her. She has earned their full respect and trust and is valued by all in the company. Her approach to work and business ethic is impeccable. We work very closely together, and she provides a calm and logical view when we face challenges and is a huge support to me.
“We are a very close company and she is really the mother of all the men at the office, often assisting with resolving personal challenges with the staff as well. Her bubbly personality and infectious laugh round off the very special woman. She is a true asset to WWS and we are very lucky to have her as part of our team.”
As Nick values all of his employees, Lenah is extremely grateful that he has given them all a platform to grow.
“Working very close to the owner and founder of WWS Nicholas Rabjohn who also gives all employees platform to grow within company and explore externally, the treatment was not any different because of my gender as he is very open to new ideas and is courageous. He does things differently by building a second home at work. The atmosphere and the culture are family orientated, we work hard and play just as hard.”
“WWS is proud to be part of the of the support of women in sports and initiative by gsport.”
The company has continued to show their support for women even outside of their offices as they have supported the gsport Trust for many years.
“The partnership began when Jack Mark Davis met with Kass Naidoo and agreed to sponsor the branding for the gsport Trust initiative in support of women in sport. That has never changed ever since, instead WWS has always improved from erecting a 3m media wall to a 18m VIP walkthrough,” said Sithole.
“The upliftment of women in the society is very important as women are always unnoticed with perceptions that they only belong in the kitchen now dynamics have changed and WWS is proud to be part of the of the support of women in sports and initiative by gsport to give them full recognition they deserve through their hard work and dedication.
With the 14th edition of the Momentum gsport Awards having recently been held, Sithole has seen the growth of the event, especially this year.
“gsport has grown extensively from when they started with few media and the one media wall, to a prestige event that everyone wants to be at. It’s a good networking platform where media and high-end profile holders in different companies meet in one room. The red carpet walk in that allows people to take pictures enjoy the moment while creating memories, the food choice is always excellent there is nothing to fault with this event,” she ended.
Photo 1 Caption: Operations Director of Worldwide Sports Lenah Sithole, pictured left, has risen above all her challenges to become a key individual at her company. Photo: Rebecca Hearfield / gsport
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