Metrofile today announced that Group Chief Executive Officer Pfungwa Serima, who has held the role since 1 February 2016, will step down effective 30 September 2024. However, Serima will remain with the company on a full-time basis until 31 December 2024 to ensure a smooth leadership transition.
Serima informed the board of his desire to pursue new opportunities after three decades in corporate leadership. Under his leadership, the JSE-listed company saw significant progress, particularly in advancing its digital strategy. When he joined, digital services contributed less than 1% to revenue, but by the end of the 30 June 2024 financial year, that figure had risen to 26%. Another key milestone during Serima’s tenure was the business surpassing the R1 billion revenue mark.
The board expressed its gratitude to Serima for his contributions and leadership and wished him well as he embarks on the next phase of his career.
“The board is pleased to announce the appointment of Thabo Seopa as Group Chief Executive Officer, effective 1 October 2024,” said the company. Seopa is currently an Independent Non-Executive Director at Metrofile.
Seopa recently served as interim CEO of AfriGIS, a geospatial information and data science company, from 1 March 2022 to 31 August 2024. Prior to that, he was the CEO and Managing Director of Trudon, publishers of the Yellow Pages and Phone Book. During his time at Trudon, Seopa led the transformation of the company into a digital media business offering website production, hosting, search engine optimization, and social media advertising. He also helped the company establish a strong digital presence on its own platforms and those of its big tech partners. Earlier in his career, Seopa spent seven years as an investment banker with HSBC and UBS.
Seopa joins Metrofile at a time when the company is continuing to expand its digital strategy. “The board believes Thabo’s experience at Trudon, where he led the transformation of a 100% paper-based media company into a digital platform business, will be invaluable in accelerating Metrofile’s digital transformation,” the statement read.
In related changes, the board announced that Shivan Mansingh will assume the role of Managing Director of Metrofile Records Management South Africa, effective 1 October 2024. Mansingh will continue as Group Chief Financial Officer until a suitable successor is found, after which he will remain an Executive Director of the Group. “This change is part of the company’s succession plan,” the board noted.
Committee Changes
In line with these leadership transitions, Thabo Seopa will step down from his role on the Audit, Governance, and Risk Committee. He will be succeeded by Andile Khumalo, an Independent Non-Executive Director, who will also join the Strategy and Investment Committee effective 1 October 2024.
