Video entertainment company MultiChoice has announced leadership changes, with the highlight of the shake-up being the resignation of Showmax CEO Yolisa Phahle.
In a letter to MultiChoice employees, seen by ITWeb, CEO Calvo Mawela says from March next year, Phahle will consult to the group for a period of 12 months and report to MultiChoice South Africa CEO Marc Jury.
This means Jury will run Showmax and its South African operations, as the firm continues its search for a new Showmax CEO.
Phahle was appointed CEO of video streaming service Showmax in 2020.
“In what could be characterised as the end of an era defined by a solid career and almost two decades with the group, it is with mixed emotions to announce that our Showmax CEO Yolisa Phahle is making her way into the next chapter of her career,” Mawela tells MultiChoice staffers.
He notes that discussions have been under way, with an understanding that she will be entering the retirement phase of her career in the near future, thus the need for a seamless transition.
“Knowing the void that would be left by this seasoned executive, we have been planning a smooth and seamless transition with Yoli for a while. After careful deliberations, we have concluded that Yoli will start a handover process, wherein Showmax will report to Marc Jury from 1 September, with Yoli providing full-time advisory support to Marc for a period of six months.”
According to Mawela, Phahle will be remembered for her unparalleled work since joining M-Net in 2005 as general manager for Channel O, and later being appointed channel director for Local Channels SA, where she launched the Mzansi Magic portfolio of channels.
She was appointed M-Net CEO in 2015.
Mawela also announced the appointment of former ICASA chairperson Dr Keabetswe Modimoeng as the new group executive of corporate affairs and stakeholder relations, reporting to Mawela.
In his new role, he will continue to oversee the rest of Africa stakeholder management and regulatory functions.
“In his current corporate affairs and stakeholder relations role within MultiChoice Africa, Kea has in a short space of time proven himself by assisting the business to navigate complex stakeholder issues and forging meaningful partnerships across the continent,” says Mawela.
“Kea, who is a former Sunday Times award-winning journalist, brings a wealth of experience from both the private and public sectors, where he held senior corporate governance, corporate citizenship and public affairs roles across the African continent.”
He holds a PhD in Managerial Sciences from Durban University of Technology, a senior executive fellows programme at Harvard University and completed an executive development programme at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Mawela also followed up on the initial announcement made earlier this year regarding Rendani Ramovha’s appointment as SuperSport CEO.
“On this note, please be informed that Rendani will assume his new role from 1 September 2023, reporting to Marc [Jury] in the interim to ensure a seamless handover of strategic relationships with sporting bodies.
“In his current role as head of marketing and commercial, Rendani has led some exciting initiatives within SuperSport, including SuperSport Schools, Super Picks (BetKing and SuperSport partnership) and the SA20 Cricket league.
“In order to enhance our group’s positioning in the industry, and to cement the stakeholder-centric posture of our platform vision, we have decided to make changes in the corporate affairs division. These changes will form part of the broader process of reviewing and repositioning the division going forward.”
Mawela added that Collen Dlamini will step out of the role and provide advisory services on legislative, regulatory and policy, effective from 1 September.
“We wish Collen well in his future endeavours and thank him for his contribution over the years, most notably his role in positioning MultiChoice as the platform of choice, as well as his key role in various internal and external programmes.
“We wish Rendani, Marc and Kea the best as they take on their new responsibilities, and gratitude goes to Tex Teixeira, who has been diligently holding the fort on the SuperSport front. We look forward to their contributions as we pivot our bold content ambition to fruition,” Mawela concludes.
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