10 Things You Didn’t Know About Sipho Maseko

Sipho Maseko

Sipho Maseko is a South African businessman. He is the current chief executive officer of Telkom, SA Soc Ltd. He is an interesting figure who has stirred up his share of controversy. We looked into his personal and business history to learn more about him and discovered how he has achieved a high measure of success in his career despite the ups and downs. To help bring you to become more familiar with this interesting executive, here are 10 things you probably didn’t know about Sipho Maseko.

1. Sipho Maseko holds two bachelor’s degrees

Mr. Maseko enrolled in classes at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1992. He completed his degree at the institution in 1992. According to his LinkedIn profile, after he graduated from Witwatersrand, he continued his education at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in 1993. He studied in the law program there. Sipho graduated with his LLB degree in 1995.

2. He was the CEO of BP Africa

In August of 2005, Sipho was named the chief executive officer of BP Africa. This company is an online media organization that focuses on African Lifestyles with regular updates on weddings, fashion, beauty, food, and humor. Mr. Maseko stayed in this post for 6 years and 1 month, leaving in August of 2011.

3. Maseco was the COO for Vodacom

After leaving BP Africa, Sipho accepted a position as COO for a company called Vodacom in September of 2011. Vodacom is a telecommunications company that is located in Midrand, Gauteng. He was employed at Vodacom for 11 months, vacating the post in July of 2012.

4. He has been the CEO of Telkom since 2013

For the past 8 years. Mr. Maseko hs served as the chief executive officer of Telkom. Telkom is a telecommunications company that is located in Centurion, Gauteng. The company employs more than 14,300 employees in its workforce. It is an essential business in South Africa that has served as the foundation of South African communications for over 14 decades. Telkom has evolved through time and is responsible for building a network of wireless, fiber, and copper technologies throughout South Africa. It currently provides the larger corporate and global businesses in the country with managed data solutions that are scalable per their size. Telkom is a premier provider of broadband internet as well as voice service to small and medium businesses as well as for individual residential customers.

5. Sipho sits on multiple boards

According to Bloomberg, Mr. Maseko is active in providing advisement to a variety of different companies through his participation as a board member. He has been on the board at Telkom since April of 2013. He also sits on the board of Afrox, the Gyros Restaurant Group, and of African Oxygen Ltd from 2012 through 2015. His experience in executive leadership has made him an asset for strategic and long-term planning.

6. He trained as a lawyer

According to Capetalk, during the 1980s, Mr. Maseko attended Wits to become a lawyer. At that time in his life, he was active in student politics. Instead of practicing law, however, he joined the Financial Services Board. Although he completed his educational requirements, he has never served as an attorney.

7. He has endured controversy

Sipho Maseko was investigated for fraud in July of 2014. The charges against him were for driving a Range Rover that was equipped with cloned number license plates. In addition, he was accused of running up a sizeable amount of traffic fines in the amount of R30,000. When asked about the charges, Mr. Maseko denied all of the accusations. He asserted that there were never any formal complaints lodged against him for the accusations. This was an event that was reported through the media but no proof of wrongdoing emerged. It is still unknown whether this was merely a rumor or if the events took place.

8. 2014 was a rough year for Sipho Maseko

In 2014, Sipho had to answer to accusations of committing a few crimes, for which he was never prosecuted. He also experienced health issues during this year. What was considered to be a routine operation nearly cost him his life. Although full details of the type of surgery he underwent have not yet been disclosed, it was reported that during the procedure in a hospital, he choked on his blood and nearly died during the procedure. The health care workers were able to resolve the issue.

9. He was viewed as the savior of Telkom

When the position for CEO of Telkom first became available, it was with hesitancy that Mr. Maseko finally applied for the job. He had reservations about the position because there had been a fast and long turnover rate at the company. It was difficult for them to keep anyone in the job. Telkom had earned a bad reputation in South Africa for providing “notoriously poor service.” Customers have long had issues with the service provided by the company that has been in business for more than a century. Maseko is deeply involved in the process of transforming the company but he admits that it is going to take time to resolve the systemic issues that run deep within the company.

10. Sipho experiences loneliness in his job

Mr. Maseko admitted that being the CEO of Telkom is often very lonely and he stands on his own making important decisions that are not always popular. It is a job that he is good at. Since he assumed the helm, the market share prices have soared, but he feels lonely at times. Still, he continues to do the things in life that he enjoys when he’s not on the job. He doesn’t talk much about the job when he spends time with his parents and with friends. Instead, they talk about happy things they love. He tries to maintain a good balance of career and personal time.

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