Vodacom’s move to custom-built premises on Umhlanga Ridge supports the company’s drive to increase its reach in KZN. Debbie Reynolds spoke to outgoing executive head of sales and marketing Wanda Matandela about his experiences and the way forward.
We’re sitting in Wanda Matandela’s stylish office in Vodacom’s new regional headquarters in Ridgeside Park. The panoramic view is as impressive as the man himself. While his “socialite” label is not underserved, it is Wanda’s business acumen, vision and energy that grab my attention.
He also impresses me with his passion for his business, ensuring I’m up to speed with the fact that Vodafone, one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world, now owns 65% of Vodacom, and that Vodacom is ranked as the 15th largest company on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange by market capitalization.
Speed and trust
“We have totally adopted the Vodafone way of doing things … simplicity, speed and trust,” he says. “Those are our key focus areas in everything we do. We also now have a worldwide footprint which opens up all kinds of opportunities. It gives us advantages in terms of best practices, roaming charges, opportunities for employees to gain international experience and, as a third world country, we are benefiting from first world technology, innovations and procurement.”
But there are particular challenges in KZN which Vodacom intends to tackle head on. “We’re aggressively going after the emerging market space in KZN,” said Matandela. “We’re setting up distribution points in those far-flung rural areas and bringing our products closer to the people. We want the Vodacom experience to be the same whether you live in a bustling city, a town or a village. Our customers shouldn’t have to travel very far to get service and, as far as network coverage goes, we have most areas covered.”
Developing products that are accessible and affordable is vital for Vodacom’s growth in KZN considering that of the province’s 10.8 million people, 60% live within LSM one to four.
“In developing and promoting our products we have to look at initiatives that will satisfy every market,” said Matandela. “KZN has a unique cultural mix of black, Indian and white and it’s imperative that we talk to every segment of those markets, both emerging and developed.” Continued here
1 Comment
Hey, I can see boy you are making headlines. Make sure you keep your feet on the ground.
Nice to see that you never gave up in pursuing your career, keep going boy.