In the ever-evolving world of information and communications technology (ICT) where her team has to walk the tight sustainability rope in a mega operation managing forests at the South African Forestry Company, ICT operations manager Alma Solomon is leading with kindness.
Much like her sector which she joined some 43 years ago as a programmer, Alma Solomon, ICT operations manager at SAFCOL, has seen herself not just move up the ranks, she has evolved from a concerned manager to an agile team leader who adapts to her ever changing circumstances.
Operating in the State-owned entities space, where she navigates bureaucracy, dwindling budgets and some team members that resist change, has not stopped Alma from delivering results.
In the event that deadlines have to be extended, and a plan B has to be executed, she has learnt to fail forward and forge ahead.
Today, Alma knows and understands that an awesome manager trusts her team’s capabilities and is more than happy to delegate. She believes in the phrase “if you want to be immortal share your knowledge”, Alma told CIO South Africa.
“My personal feeling is there’s no space for autocratic leadership anymore in today’s world. I’m a team leader and I believe in working together with the team. I don’t consider myself as a manager but I still feel that you need to be in touch and stay connected with your team to be able to manage them effectively and personally,” Alma says.
She strongly believes that knowing what is happening in your team’s personal lives is crucial and key for success.
“If you have a team member that’s really struggling with something personally that affects their ability to cope, you need to intervene as a manager and give them the tools that are available to assist. If you see this team member is struggling with some work-related areas, you make sure that they get the right training,” she says.
According to Alma, a team is only as strong as the weakest member in your team.
Managing operations at SAFCOL could on a typical day see Alma overseeing the infrastructure side of the business, or ensuring service providers are being paid, as she wears several hats in the role.
“It’s pretty fast-paced. You can never plan your day in ICT. I always have these curve balls coming my way, unexpected curve balls that you don’t think about, and there’s different kinds of things that come your way,” Alma adds.
In addition, Alma has to ensure that the business operates in line with regulation, particularly in the bureaucratic world of state-owned companies the company operates in.
This means Alma is constantly monitoring National Treasury regulations and supply chain management processes. “In the end, you feel good that something is at least running properly and it’s a success factor for the company,” she adds.
Presently, Alma and her team are faced with the challenge of providing or accessing information from the most remote parts of the country, the vast forests in South Africa, where they operate.
“People must be able to access their information, any place that they’re standing in, even if it’s on top of Kilimanjaro or down there in the forest. We’re in the forestry business. We grow trees, that is our core business, and we’ve got a very wide spread area that we service,” she explains.
SAFCOL is a state-owned company under the agriculture, forestry and fisheries department with operations in Limpopo, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal and the southern half of Mozambique.
The business also covers about 25 business units spread over as far north as Limpopo, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, and in the southern half of Mozambique (Manica and Sofala provinces).
The mission to keep users connected has not been without challenges, which Alma candidly shares. It includes cost containment measures, change management and frequent loss of signal, as well as safeguarding assets, including human resources, in crime-ridden parts of the country.
“Unfortunately, we have that factor of theft and it makes it very crucial to be able to communicate,” she says.
She adds that her team is involved and assisting in a project, in cooperation with the service provider, to roll out two-way digital radios (replacing analog radios) fitted onto vehicles and handheld radios which will make communication easier.
Also, in cooperation with the service provider, they identified additional towers for the private network to accommodate the two-way radio communication.
And when she's not ensuring that users are connected, Alma steps away from screens and technology and winds down by taking in nature by being outdoors or tending to her rescue dogs and cats at home.
“My unwinding is at home. I love to be at home with my rescues. I’m talking about cats and dogs. I don’t have a television. I don’t watch television,” she says proudly. If she is truly interested in a news event, Alma will actively search for it on the internet before stepping away to enjoy a fire outside with her husband.
In the world of tech, daily updates that require the team to be on top of their game, Alma says soft skills are just as crucial as technical skills and she has learnt a great deal from SAFCOL CIO Masebolelo Gaeganelwe or ‘Mase’ as she’s affectionately known, whom she reports into. They’ve built a great working relationship and Alma sings nothing but Mase’s praises. Despite being in the game for more than 40 years, Alma is still willing to learn from colleagues, some of whom have half her experience.
“Mase has taught me to relax and one of the things she says is ‘It is what it is’. If you cannot climb the mountain then it is what it is. Sometimes you have to be a little bit stuck before you can move forward.”
