PERSONALITY PROFILE
Lindelwa Isabelle – thrives in being challenged Passionate Lindelwa Isabelle, 48, sales and revenue director of Tsogo Sun Hotels, is a consummate professional, who is ambitious, thrives in being challenged and is self-motivated.
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he is passionate about people, travelling and exploring the world around her. Ms Isabelle has held her current position for over two years. Her main responsibility is to lead the team to achieve the revenue targets set for the business at the right rate at the right time, drive relationship building with both internal and external stakeholders, clients and partners as well as to identify new opportunities for revenue growth for hotels. In her previous position, she was an executive marketing manager for Tsogo Sun Hotels – a position she held from 2009 to 2018. Her main responsibility, through marketing, was to position Tsogo Sun hotels, grow revenue and add value to the business by managing all the promotions, advertising, marketing strategies, etc. From 2008-2009 she worked at Sandton Convention Centre as a general manager: sales and marketing where she was tasked with the responsibility of generating revenue for the SCC. She has also worked at the Gauteng Enterprise Propeller as the general manager: marketing and communications. At Ogilvy Johannesburg she was a group account director working on the South African Tourism account. This, after she had worked at Gauteng Tourism Authority as a senior marketing manager for over four years. On the education front, she completed the executive development programme with the University of Stellenbosch Business School in 2014. She holds an Honours Degree in Literature from Wits University where she won The Sibusiso Mabena Memorial Award for the Best Honours Dissertation in 1996. She also holds a BA degree from the same institution. She also holds a PR Diploma from the Public Relations Institute of SA (PRISA) and a Marketing Diploma from UNISA. Above all of this, she is a wife and mother to two beautiful children that she adores. 24 Business Events Africa June 2021
Where do you see the business events industry in South Africa at present and where do you see it heading in the future? Covid-19 has had an impact on almost all aspects of our lives. Unprecedented lockdowns, strict travel bans and social distancing measures have had the biggest impact on the travel and tourism industry in general and, more adversely, on the events industry. This industry has faced significant revenue losses and contracted in terms of growth. Several companies were forced to lay off significant portions of their staff. 2019/2020 saw the cancellation of many prominent conferences, exhibitions and workshops to slow the spread of the virus. Some highly anticipated major international events like Meetings Africa have been postponed indefinitely. Despite the ban on large gatherings, connection and social interaction are still part of basic human interaction. Most companies have found novel and innovative ways to bring people together to share experiences, network, conduct business while still adhering to social distancing rules and guidelines. Covid-19 restrictions have forced us to rely on technology to connect with others and have been a catalyst for the growth of companies that facilitate this. The pandemic has hit the revenues of traditional event planning companies hard. However, there has been a steady rise in the number of virtual event start-ups who have entered the space, offering users access to a wide range of features, including virtual rooms, which attendees may move in and out of. Many companies have embraced technology to bring unique virtual experiences to their customers. “Hybrid” events have also become somewhat of a norm, incorporating both live and virtual elements. This presents a great opportunity for event planners, who will no longer be limited by, for example, the size of the venue and may expand their
audience to include virtual attendees, as well as those who prefer to attend in person. I do believe that once social distancing measures are relaxed and life once again becomes more normal (whatever the normal will be), there will still be a need for physical meetings. “Physical contact distinguishes humans from other animals. From a warm handshake or sympathetic hug to a congratulatory pat on the back, we have developed complex languages, cultures, and emotional expression through physical contact” (www.khca.org). While virtual meetings and hybrid meetings will likely not be quite as sought after when the pandemic is over, it looks like virtual events are here to stay, in one form or another. Where did you grow up? I was born and raised in Dobsonville, Soweto. I spent most of my life at various boarding schools in the Eastern Cape. Where did you begin your career? At Heinemann Publishers, where I was a fellow researcher. How long have you been in the sector? I have been in this sector for over twenty years. www.businesseventafrica.com
