Hamilton Ratshefola, Cornastone Consulting CEO and chairman of recently listed DVT, has been named Computer Society of South Africa (CSSA) IT Personality of the Year, in association with ITWeb, Gartner Africa and the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS).
The award recognises industry players who make an outstanding contribution to the South African IT industry`s growth and development.
"I`m delighted that this year I was recognised against a very high quality of achievers," says Ratshefola. "I was nominated one of South Africa`s 20 most influential black businessmen in IT on numerous occasions in the past years, an achievement boosted by IBM`s training and investment in my career. It highlighted early on for me that training and investing in your people is such an important issue." Ratshefola led IBM`s Public Sector business.
Cornastone, started in 2000 by Ratshefola and his partner, Lufuno Nevhutalu, by bonding their homes, is today one of the country`s most respected IT companies, and currently clears R200 million in revenue, just over R20 million in profit and employs over 250 people. Each year the company employs between 25 and 30 graduates through a graduate recruitment programme.
Cornastone invests in these employees by training them and assisting them with early life skills and provides them with early-start programmes, with accommodation and transport.
Ratshefola believes investing in South Africans and focusing on the positive, without being naive, is the key to success.
"The South African media is full of stories about crime, corruption, unemployment and skills shortages, among various other woes," says Ratshefola.
"We appear to be a nation beset by many problems and few solutions. Under these circumstances, many business leaders have developed a fundamentally pessimistic mindset."
He keenly supports initiatives that drive national development. "There is no point in our spending time highlighting the plight of our country; we all know the problems. The question is what each one is going to do about the problems we face. I can make a difference in my company, in my own household, in my own community, and so can all of us.
"I challenge the nay-sayers to stop throwing up their hands, and rather to get them dirty," he says. "If you`re a professional or retired professional, for example, stop spending too much time on the golf course, go to a township school and offer your services as an advisor or mentor. You could spend your twilight years making an impact on the lives of thousands of children, therefore ensuring a better tomorrow for our children."
He recently took a stake in Walking on Water, a Christian TV channel, because he believes Christian values are important to developing and progressing South African society.
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