Education: the power to change lives
Education is a powerful tool. When it meets opportunity, dedication, and passion, it is a ripple effect, changing not only the life of the learner but also the lives they touch on their journey.
This is Nompilo’s story, a PMI graduate who had the opportunity to take part in a graduate programme designed by Adcorp Training to help one of our clients make a real difference in their community.
Opportunity meets passion
Nompilo completed her Financial Management diploma at Ethekwini Tvet College and received an internship at the Department of Justice at Esikhawini Magistrate Court as an intern. It was during this time that she came across an advert seeking unemployed youth (who had plans to run their own business in the future) to study business management.
“I applied and I knew that day that I was going to run my own business. I had to think wisely about what I wanted to venture into, and my family and my community had to be involved in my thinking.”
She completed PMI’s Higher Certificate in Business Management and was provided with the added entrepreneur coaching to assist her in putting together a business plan. She also learned how to go about conducting research to determine if the business idea would be viable in the market and to register the company. This remarkable young woman graduated Cum Laude on the Higher Certificate in Business Management and received the top student award.
Nompilo Nxumalo graduates with PMI and Adcorp Training
An entrepreneur mindset
Nompilo comes from a big family and grew up with only brothers. Being the first person to graduate in a family of so many members put a lot of pressure on Nompilo. She knew she had to venture into something that was sustainable. Something that didn’t rely on tenders and RFQs.
“I had to look around me and think about my community. I knew that they collected waste to sell in town and my family was in this line of work as well. I thought, what if I bring this closer to us? By doing that I can minimise transport costs, create employment and work towards a cleaner community.”
Building a legacy
Towards the end of 2018 Nompilo registered her recycling business, KK services and today has been in places she never thought she would see. The going is not easy, but she no longer sees herself sending out her CV, but rather sees herself receiving them.
“My small but growing business is ultimately about building a legacy and awareness about the importance of preserving and caring for the environment. KK services is very passionate about this cause while also making a living out of it.”
To date, her company has been sponsored at an industrial scale, she has received a grant and recently won an award for being the best youth-owned business of the year in Richards Bay from the Zululand Chamber of Commerce.
Stronger together
There was a point on her journey where Nompilo had to sit down and think about how she was going to survive and grow in this business that she loves so much. Dealing directly with the market was the best path she could take, so she got in touch with some big names in the industry and they were all happy to do business with KK services. However, the volumes that these companies wanted was not a demand that KK services could meet alone.
She partnered up with another woman-owned recycling business in the community called Uthando Solutions.
“We formed a new company called KU Green Hands that operates in the industrial space, dealing directly with the market and this company will continue to be supplied by my company and Nokubonga’s.”
The ripple effect
Today, KK services have four employees, Uthando Solutions has eight and KU Green Hands has two.
“I am proud to say that we are able to meet our targets for our customers. I believe that two hands are better than one and that working hand in hand will enable us to care for our environment while creating employment opportunities and minimising waste to landfills.”
This opportunity has changed the course of Nompilo’s life and will continue to change lives in her community while also contributing to a cleaner earth. This is the power of education.
Nelson Mandela put it perfectly,
“Education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mine worker can become the head of the mine, that a child of farm workers can become the president of a great nation. It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another.”
Expand your horizons with Adcorp Training and PMI.
If you’re interested in furthering your career, starting a business or looking for a worthy programme to spend your bursary budget on then PMI’s Higher Certificate in Business Management is a great investment.
About Adcorp
Across the Group we have a number of end-to-end workplace solutions solving a wide range of business challenges. We search, place, develop, train and manage people for temporary and permanent job opportunities. We also supply people resources on an outsourced basis and manage people-intensive processes on behalf of our clients. Our mission is to build workplaces and careers of the future by transforming the places we work in. We do this by connecting potential.