Social Entrepreneur At Helm Of One Of SA’s Largest Agencies
Well known social entrepreneur and businessman, Thabang Skwambane, has been appointed managing director of FCB Joburg, the flagship agency within the FCB South Africa group.
Skwambane joins FCB Joburg as a shareholder of Threefold Creative, a multimedia and technology business that brings together a multi-disciplinary team of highly talented creative to deliver audio, visual and sensory experiences.
In addition to that, he is the chairman and founder of The Lonely Road Foundation (www.thelonelyroad.org), which enables rural communities to take care of orphans and vulnerable children.
Welcoming Skwambane to the FCB fold, Group CEO Brett Morris praised his business acumen and social commitment.
“Thabang is an extraordinary person, a man who has not only succeeded as a businessman but one who has done so without neglecting the plight of those less fortunate than himself.
“FCB believes this mix of capitalism and philanthropy is what is needed today to ensure FCB Joburg’s sustainability. It is our goal to continue to make a positive contribution to our clients’ businesses while never losing sight of the challenges facing this country and doing what we can do to make it a better place.
“With his background and experience, and given the fact that his moral compass is so closely aligned with that of FCB, Thabang is ideally positioned to build on the agency’s recent successes and partner with a highly talented and passionate executive creative director like Jonathan Deeb to take the agency to the next level.”
Skwambane added: “Great organisations are created by great people, and I believe that FCB is a great organisation that is an industry leader with a social conscience at its core. Together we are a force for good, and it is this purpose that inspires me to be a part of FCB.
“It is an honour to be able to work with such creative and talented individuals who make FCB the award-winning institution that it is. I’m sure I will learn from the FCB family globally, and hopefully will impart what I know and believe to them as we strive to develop true and lasting partnerships with our clients.
“I don’t have any formal marketing and advertising training or experience but I couldn’t ask for a better team to guide me through the learning curve. I believe that my business experience and knowledge will complement the team so that the agency continues to grow and prosper while delivering exciting, ground-breaking work for its clients.”
Skwambane is a former banker turned social development entrepreneur and social activist. He left a successful career in merchant and investment banking at Standard Bank to co-found Kaelo, a wellness company focusing on HIV and Aids. He recently completed his Masters in Public Administration (MPA) at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and is an Archbishop Tutu Leadership Fellow.
FCB recently launched the Giant Flag (www.giantflag.co.za), a multi-dimensional project harnessing several streams of environmental, social and economic activity in a bid to break the cycle of unemployment and poverty in the Karoo’s Camdeboo Municipality.
Comprising a conference and tourism precinct as well as a 4 megawatt solar panel field, the project takes its name from its most inspired element – a 66 hectare South African flag made up of 2.5 million coloured desert plants (cacti and spekboom).