Ntshinka aims for stars
Black-owned company director aims to produce entrepreneurs
Simbo Ntshinka is a managing director and partner at Itec Tiyende, an innovative digital and enterprise communications solutions company.
Ntshinka, 44, joined the company, which is majority black-owned, as a general manager in 2006.
Then he was tasked with establishing a sales team that would focus on the public sector.
“When I was growing up I was good at fixing stuff and I thought I would be an electrical engineer but I ended up taking mechanical engineering,” he said.
Ntshinka has a National Diploma in mechanical engineering from the Walter Sisulu University.
“In fact my career started at South African Nuclear Energy Corporation Soc Limited (Necsa) as an engineering trainee and technical trainer in fluid mechanics.
“I furthered my studies in BCom economics at Unisa where I completed a managerial finance programme through the Gibs Business School,” Ntshinka said.
It was at this stage that Ntshinka followed a career in document management and printing technologies, diversifying to enterprise communications system with other companies.
With his background in mechanical engineering and managerial finance, Ntshinka started as a general manager at Itec Tiyende.
In his position, Ntshinka is responsible for the performance of the company, driving overall strategy, marketing positioning and managing relations with other Itec partner companies.
“As a company we aim to deliver simple, smart solutions that will help people to run their businesses more efficiently.
“Our ability to simplify business operations and reduce costs has made us a preferred technology partner to businesses and organisations across all sectors of the economy,” Ntshinka said.
The company was recently awarded the Vodacom Partner of the Year award in the Enterprise Mobile Revenue category.
“What sets us apart is our years of experience and our innovative, customised solutions. Our range of global partnerships means we can offer businesses a broad range of printing and imaging products and digital records management solutions.
“However it’s not all smooth
‘ ‘ We aim to deliver simple and smart solutions to run business
sailing because running a business l ike ours is demanding and requires time and effort. We deal with complex projects that require capital to roll out. We are constantly talking [to] financial institutions and partners,” he said.
Ntshinka said the company had grown over the years and had been awarded a level-1 BBBEE certification as a result of its commitment to transformation.
The company has 115 personnel, including interns.
“Itec Tiyende has placed great emphasis on skills development and enterprise as part of its transformation strategy. “We stand by the belief that effective empowerment is critical to business success in South Africa.
“We also participate in a range of programmes designed to spur [on] entrepreneurship in underprivileged communities and uplift previously disadvantaged individuals,” Ntshinka said.
When Ntshinka is not busy with innovative digitals, he loves playing golf.
He is also an avid reader of biographies, history and business literature.