Published February 13, 2018
By : Staff Writer
BP is one of the world's largest oil and gas companies. In South Africa, the group's history in petroleum and diesel retailing reaches back to the 1920s.
It's been almost 100 years in the making, but now Southern Africa BP has one of the most powerful African CEOs in oil and gas.
Priscillah Mabelane was appointed as the chief executive officer of BP Southern Africa last August. She took the helm of the organization on September 1, 2017, exactly six years after joining as the chief financial officer in 2011.
According to the company, BP Southern Africa is spread over three countries. Angola is upstream, focused on exploration and production of oil and gas, whereas South Africa and Mozambique are downstream, which means refining and marketing of oil and gas.
Mabelane is the first woman in the history of South Africa’s oil industry to head a multi-national company.
Most recently, she served as operations director for BP’s United Kingdom retail business, where she is credited with a strong safety record whilst delivering financial performance and progress on key strategic milestones.
Prior to joining BP, Mabelane held various executive roles in large South African companies including Airports Company where she was the CFO; Ernst & Young where she was a tax director and Eskom Holdings Limited where she held various roles in finance, tax, and general management.
Mabelane is a qualified chartered accountant and earned a bachelor's degree in accounting.
“I didn’t have a 20-year plan, but I am ambitious, and I knew I wanted to end up in the C-suite,” she told Charlotte Mathews in a December 2017 interview for business live dot co za
A few weeks into her new job, Mabelene was interviewed by Fin24, South Africa's largest source of business, financial and economic news.
While a teenager in Limpopo, she wanted to be a chartered accountant, inspired by her family's bookkeeping.
“They had no idea what I was talking about, but I was clear and I achieved my goal,” Mabelane told Poloko Tau in an interview for Fin24.
“My dad, a business leader, worked hard,” she recalls .“Book-keeping was part of his office duties. I used to work there as a typist during school holidays. Typewriting teaches you to be more diligent because if you make an error at the end, you have to start all over again from the top. So, you have to be focused and diligent. These are attributes I have grown up with.”
Mabelane also told Fin24 that she does "not want to be a special story ... I just want to be an example to women that it is possible,” she said.
However, she confessed that she always thought she had to work twice as hard.
“I have dealt with perceptions and challenges, but what has made these worse is the fact that I am not only a woman but also black. In our South African culture, we still have a long way to go in terms of dealing with racism. I deal with all these issues and try to prove myself all the time," said Mabelane, a mother of two daughters.
“When my girls were in high school, one of my priorities was dropping them off at school three times a week. My personal assistant would have to reschedule meetings because that time needed to be respected.”
She also said she would have liked to spend more time with her daughters.
“If I had to do it all again today, I would do things slightly differently in terms of balancing my priorities.”
Mabelane’s advice to others wishing to make it big in business is not to be afraid of making mistakes or even shedding tears.
“I have made so many mistakes in my career. I do the same in my personal life because I am no different from anyone else. “However, I do not view my mistakes as failures but as learning opportunities.
“I work hard at BP, but when I have to take two hours off, I feel guilty. Why?
Organizations need to have policies and a culture that is flexible, she told Fin24.
BP Southern Africa is one of the largest oil companies in the country. BP SA employs more than 1 000 people. The main centers of employment are Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town.
