ICT industry veteran Mthunzi Mdwaba's “removal” this week as deputy CEO of listed recruitment company Kelly Group is allegedly due to a fallout with top boss Grenville Wilson, whose shoes he was meant to fill in October.
Kelly issued an obscure announcement to shareholders on Tuesday, saying Mdwaba had been “removed” as deputy CEO of the group and as a board director, and is currently on suspension. However, the company says Mdwaba remains an employee of the group, and is continuing in his role as CEO of Torque IT.
Mdwaba became Kelly's deputy CEO after the recruitment company bought ICT training group Torque IT two years ago. Sources close to both companies say Mdwaba was stripped of his title because of a personality clash with Wilson.
Kelly is attributing his suspension to a “breakdown in the relationship of trust between Mdwaba and itself”. This is the only comment Kelly is prepared to make, and several questions about Mdwaba's relationship with Wilson have not been answered.
No clarity
Mdwaba was set to take over as group CEO in October, a position currently filled by Wilson. However, the two men have very different management styles, and a clash over their different types of leadership are alleged to be the reason Mdwaba was stripped of his job.
ITWeb has learnt that, although the board issued the statement saying Mdwaba has been stripped of his role, the only board member who had an issue with Mdwaba was Wilson.
However, Mdwaba has yet to be formally charged with any misconduct or to receive a written complaint from Kelly. He tells ITWeb that he cannot comment on the situation at this stage, as his lawyers are dealing with the matter. However, he maintains that he will clear his name “at the appropriate time”.
Different styles
Mdwaba has been dissatisfied with Wilson's management style for some time. On 13 June, he sent the CEO a 16-page, sternly worded e-mail, copied to the chairman and deputy chairman of the Kelly Group, outlining his grievances.
The e-mail, a copy of which is in ITWeb's possession, speaks of growing tension between the two men and outlines Mdwaba's perception that he has been unfairly burdened with too much responsibility, while receiving no support or recognition.
According to the email, the two also disagreed over the future structure of the Kelly Group, and how to grow the company going forward. Mdwaba also complained that Wilson did not want to let go of the company, referring to him as wanting to “rule from the grave” and to have Mdwaba reporting to Wilson after his retirement.
Other allegations made by Mdwaba are that Wilson had been “bullying” staff and Mdwaba's 18 months at the company have led to stress “like I have never experienced before” as a result of Wilson's management style.
The Kelly Group would not comment on the contents of the e-mail and it is not clear whether it was this correspondence that led to Mdwaba's suspension.
Mdwaba has held high-profile positions in the ICT sector, and is a former national chairman of the Black IT Forum, and a member of the ICT Charter Steering Committee. He was also involved in the Innovation Hub, Productivity SA and is currently VP of Business Unity SA.
In July last year, Mdwaba was appointed a member of the International Labour Organisation's governing body representing SADC business.
Kelly bought Mdwaba's company, Torque IT, in August 2008, for a maximum amount of R38 million. Torque IT provides high-level technical training services to the private and public sector on Cisco, Microsoft, VMware, Novell, Sun and other major systems.
It also provides customised training services to school-leavers seeking employment in the ICT industry. Torque IT outperformed the group in the first half of the year to March, growing revenue by 5.9%, while Kelly's total revenue from its South African operations declined by 2.8%.
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Mdwaba mum on Kelly 'dismissal'
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