In today’s business landscape, the role of finance is evolving far beyond numbers. For Thabile Ngidi, Chief Financial Officer at Bidvest Prestige, finance is a strategic lever, a space where innovation, simplification, and business partnership converge to unlock growth.
Thabile’s vision for Prestige Finance is clear: a department operating at the highest level of efficiency and automation, enabling her team to spend less time on manual processes and more time as strategic business partners. She thrives on optimising the business, reducing complexity, and finding faster, smarter ways to work. Beyond reporting, she sees finance as a critical driver of value, one that identifies and addresses financial leakages, reduces wastage, and safeguards resources to strengthen the business.
The path to this leadership role, however, has not been without challenges. Thabile speaks candidly about the ongoing pursuit of work-life balance, a reality that often means making difficult choices between professional responsibilities and personal milestones. “Some days you win, some days you lose,” she reflects. As a woman with a strong personality who is unafraid to challenge the status quo, she has learned the importance of building trust by spending time with her team, ensuring they understand her intentions come from a place of shared purpose. And like many leaders, she continues to navigate imposter syndrome, a journey of unlearning and self-assurance.
Bidvest Prestige has played an integral role in her growth. Leadership has embraced her individuality, providing the freedom to experiment, innovate, and learn from mistakes without fear. Operating within the Bidvest Group’s decentralised model, she carries both the accountability and the autonomy to deliver results. The collaborative culture at EXCO level fosters cross-functional thinking, and Thabile continues to invest in her development through ongoing studies, constantly seeking new ways to add value.
Her advice to young women aspiring to enter finance and corporate leadership is practical and direct:
- Be part of the business, not just a department.
- Understand the operations intimately, go to the plant, learn the process, know the people.
- Don’t limit yourself to reporting; those days are gone.
- Volunteer for work beyond your scope, will pay off.
- Embrace AI as a tool to simplify and improve the way you work.
- Build your network early and nurture it.
When it comes to gender equity, Thabile is proud of Bidvest Prestige’s track record. True gender equity, she believes, does not mean excluding men, but creating environments where everyone can thrive. She also highlights inclusion for people with disabilities as an essential measure of equity, one where Prestige has met its targets. The business has consistently maintained BBBEE Level 1 status, a reflection of its ongoing commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
This Women’s Month, Thabile’s message is one of courage and continuous growth: “Step into spaces that challenge you, lead with purpose, and never stop learning. Every barrier you break clears the path for the women who will follow.”
View Thabile’s story on the video below: