GET TO KNOW...
On the lighter side of things, we ask the
industry experts what makes them tick. . . .
Cathy Smith,
Managing Director at SAP Africa
What would you describe as your
most memorable work-achievement?
During my time at SAP, a big moment for
me was speaking at Africa Code Week to a
room filled with VIP stakeholders and, more
importantly, hundreds of young children.
This takes me back to my roots of coding.
It is extremely fulfilling and rewarding to
support and drive the enablement of coding
among Africa’s youth to develop our future
leaders. ICT is a tough, highly competitive
and complex industry and my SAP mandate
“
IT IS EXTREMELY
FULFILLING AND
REWARDING
TO SUPPORT
AND DRIVE THE
ENABLEMENT OF
CODING AMONG
AFRICA’S YOUTH
TO DEVELOP OUR
FUTURE LEADERS.
www.intelligentcio.com
is to augment a culture of leadership,
high performance and accountability, and
accelerate customer value.
What first made you think of a
career in technology?
My ICT journey started at IBM. For me,
it all began with coding and how we can
use technology and innovation to make a
difference and create solutions that make
an impact and ultimately address global
challenges. I then moved to Cisco where I
was appointed as Managing Director for
Sub-Saharan Africa with the task of leading
the development and execution of the
company's go-to-market sales and Digital
Transformation strategies for the region. And
in 2017, I was appointed by SAP as its first
female leader in Africa.
in every product, service or innovation that
we introduce to the market.
What do you think is the current hot
technology talking point?
We have several happening in the industry
right now, but for me, the hot topic is
Artificial Intelligence, AI. Africa needs to
What style of management
philosophy do you employ with your
current position?
I believe that good leadership is a mix of
things, but first and foremost it's about
having your own north star. It’s about
intrinsically knowing the company vision and
purpose and having the ability to articulate
this through the power of ‘why’. SAP is a
purpose-led organisation and we know that
to ‘help the world run better’ and ‘improve
people’s lives’ we must share this purpose
with our customers and partners, live it
through every staff member, and illustrate it
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