In a male-dominated industry, it is rather fascinating to see women taking up space.
Nobuhle Moyo, who hails from Butterworth, Eastern Cape took a risk and started her business after realising that the corporate world was not for her.
“I was a salaried worker at a financial institution, and I wasn’t happy. I have always been a go-getter hence I took the step to start my own thing, Aglo Associates,” said Moyo.
“The motivation behind it all was to be able to do something that I’m passionate about and taking charge of my own life and responsibility of driving it to greater heights.”
Aglo Associates, a construction and procurement company based in Alberton, east of Johannesburg was founded by 29-year-old Moyo in 2014 after she had the desire to be independent and change her financial situation, as well as lift other women around her.
“Depending on a salary was hard because I could only do so much with it, which meant that I depended on someone for my livelihood, and I had to change that.
“Starting my business meant that I could provide someone with a job and thus turn around their situation as well.”
Moyo, who holds a diploma in financial management from Milpark Business School, said attracting the right clients was one of the hurdles she encountered when she was trying to get on her feet in the industry.
“As a young woman, it was difficult for me to attract the right clients or get them to trust me with providing what they wanted.
“Financially, I also struggled, as I could not rely on my family as they also did not have the funds. I hopped from one lending institution to another to finally get capital.”
She said she mastered being humble when approaching potential clients and working on building a working relationship that would extend outside of the work space.
“I respect my clients and they understand that I expect the same from them, the same goes for my employees. My code of conduct is always rooted on integrity and honesty in handling my clients and my employees.”
Describing a normal workday on site, Moyo said it gets quite busy, as they make sure that they have enough manpower on the ground and enough material for what needs to be done.
“We have 15 permanent staff members. Depending on how big the project, we get between 30 and 50 part-time employees to assist.”
She added that they work with both private and public institutions, and their code of conduct is what has made them be still standing up to this day.
Moyo, who has been in business for close to a decade, said her greatest achievement is always finishing projects on time, making sure that the client is happy.
“We always put maximum effort into everything we do, and when it’s done, I consider it an achievement.
“My dream is to run a well-established business that can empower other people, especially women,” she explained.
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