FNB Wealth and Investments chief executive Bheki Mkhize has major ambitions to grow the business he has led since July 2017.
“We have big growth ambitions,” Mkhize told Sunday World during an interview.
FNB Wealth and Investments has over 300 000 clients or more than R60-billion in assets. “We want to grow our customers to close to a million over the next few years. FNB has 8-million customers. Our challenge is to get many of those FNB clients to invest with us,” he added.
In addition, he wants to grow FNB Wealth and Investments’ asset base and market share.
FNB Wealth and Investments predominantly serves retail investors but plays across the entire client spectrum.
“The business’s purpose is to help clients better manage their investments,” Mkhize said.
He considers himself to be a down-to-earth person. “I am approachable, value-driven, an honest broker and a patriotic South African. We must leave the country and the world a better place,” he added.
Mkhize, who hails from KwaZulu-Natal north coast, is a chartered accountant. He has a bachelor of commerce degree in accounting and a postgraduate diploma in accounting from the University of Cape Town.
He enjoys mentoring and gains satisfaction from seeing people grow. His biggest challenge is managing and leading staff given the issues they face. “People are going through a lot, including loadshedding, so when they get to work, people’s psyche is not necessarily in a good space. So given these mental issues as a leader, having empathy is important.”
Another challenge Mkhize faces is that FNB Wealth and Investments is trying to grow in a local economy that is hardly expanding. He said the business he leads has several differentiating factors, including FNB’s strong brand. “We want to make it easy to do business with us and be slicker than our competitors. We also link investing to our eBucks rewards programme.”
Regarding his leadership style, Mkhize believes being authentic is vital, and showing respect to all his staff members, from a cleaner to his leadership team, is critical.
Mkhize said that one area he sometimes made mistakes in is hiring the wrong person for a job, with senior roles being crucial. However, he tries to identify issues as soon as they appear. “Fitting in with the team is important. But we also want to avoid hiring toxic people or those that do not pull their weight.”
Mkhize said the most powerful lessons he had learned since joining FirstRand included the group’s values, such as its culture of innovation and nimbleness. “If there is someone that is good enough and in their 20s, throw them in the deep end. Give them exposure, let them make mistakes, but as long as they don’t put the bank at risk.”
Mkhize said his best personal decision was marrying his wife. His best business achievement is his journey from growing up in a middle-class family and ultimately landing the role he has today. He is also proud of the awards his team has won.
The person that Mkhize admires the most is former ANC president Oliver Tambo.
“A lot of what Nelson Mandela achieved was founded on the hard work under OR Tambo’s leadership in exile,” he added.
One of Mkhize’s favourite books is Connecting the Dots: Leadership Lessons in a Startup World by John Chambers.
Outside work, Mkhize spends time with his family. He watches soccer and rugby. His favourite teams are Mamelodi Sundowns, Manchester United and the Sharks.
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