As we celebrate inspirational women in our community this Women's Month, Primedia Broadcasting showcases some of the women who hold top positions in the organisation and are responsible for taking the company to new heights.

Here’s a glimpse into their roles and careers:

• Terry Volkwyn: CEO of Primedia Broadcasting
Terry has occupied this position since 2002, and is the leading force behind Lead SA, an initiative that seeks to mobilise an active civil society. She is a previous recipient of the coveted Boss of the Year Award as well as the Woman of the Decade in the Media Award and is regarded as one of the most influential women in media today. 

Under her leadership, Primedia Broadcasting – which owns four of South Africa’s leading commercial stations: 947, 702, CapeTalk and Kfm – has grown tenfold. It’s annual growth in revenue increased by 12% over the last ten years. Terry has been instrumental in taking Primedia Broadcasting from one station to four stations, and to R1bn and beyond.

With Terry at the helm, the company established and integrated Eyewitness News, an independent, innovative news brand into all four stations. She also launched Prime Talent, an internal talent management agency.

Terry currently serves on the Primedia Group executive committee and accepted an appointment to Kaya FM’s board in 2009.

• Colleen Louw: Station manager for CapeTalk and KFM
Colleen has experienced a rapid career trajectory at Primedia Broadcasting. She joined the broadcaster in 1998 as the Public Relations Manager and swiftly moved up the ladder to become CapeTalk Station Manager in 2003, aged only 28.

When Primedia Broadcasting bought KFM in 2005, she took over management of the new music station, retaining her role on CapeTalk. Under Colleen’s leadership both stations have grown in listenership, revenue and influence within the region.

• Michelle Sampson: Primedia Broadcasting’s Chief Financial Officer
The saying goes, dynamite comes in small packages and that quote is spot on when it comes to Michelle Sampson. She’s not just your average accountant, Michelle is a powerhouse who comes with excellent experience. A qualified chartered accountant, Michelle completed her articles at KPMG, and went on to become the management account manager at Eskom, then the Finance Director at Cinemark Inc. before she moved to Primedia Broadcasting in 2006.

In addition to managing the budget, Michelle is responsible for good governance and under Michelle’s leadership, Primedia Broadcasting has been working with a carbon audit firm to ensure that the company cuts its carbon footprint each year. 
Michelle is currently also financial chairperson at the National Association of Broadcasters. She is also chairperson of the Levy Collection Committee, the industry collection body for research, as well as chairperson of the Kaya audit committee.

• Khahliso Mochaba: Group Human Capital and Regulatory Affairs Executive for Primedia Broadcasting
Since qualifying with her LLB at The University of the Witwatersrand, Khahliso has become an expert in communications law and went on to coordinate and lecture LLM Communications Law Courses and LLB Telecomunications Law from 2001 to 2007 at The University of the Witwatersrand. She also completed her second Masters degree at Columbia University in New York. 

Khahliso was instrumental in 702’s transition from AM to FM signal and continues to steer the broadcaster’s legal, regulatory and transformation decisions. She sits on the National Association of Broadcasters, chairing the commercial radio committee. 

• Malani van Huyssteen: Primedia Broadcasting’s Group Sales Manager
With decades of experience in media sales, Malani understands the importance of constantly being able to adapt in this rapidly changing industry in order to thrive. She started at 702 when it was a music station and has seen it change to a talk format and flourish. Malani opened the first 702 office in Cape Town and was there when Primedia Broadcasting acquired 947, Cape Talk and Kfm.

Before cementing her place at Primedia Broadcasting, Malani spent a few years at Ogilvy and Mather and had a stint at ReadersDigest. With a sizeable team reporting to her across two cities, and a seat on the Exco at Primedia Broadcasting, Malani’s challenges have changed considerably from chasing her own targets to mentoring her team, co-ordinating efforts, structuring processes and managing change.

Malani believes that the platforms she works on stand proud among the world’s best in terms of professionalism, best practices and strong management.

• Alexia Poulos: Marketing Manager at Primedia Broadcasting
Alexia is the force behind some of the most exciting events and activations in the city. With a background in brand strategy at advertising agencies, Alexia joined Primedia Broadcasting in 2010 as Brand Manager.

In her first three months on the job, she launched LEAD SA, Primedia Broadcasting’s personal call to every person to make a difference, as well as played a crucial role in the launch the new 947 breakfast show, Breakfast Xpress, through an innovative ‘Smile Dammit’ campaign.

She oversees the company’s brand and events portfolios. In this capacity, she is responsible for two of the biggest mass participation sports events in South Africa – the 702 Walk the Talk and the Telkom 947 Cycle Challenge. In 2014, Alexia spearheaded the strategic re-branding of all five commercial brands in the company’s stable – KFM, 947, Cape Talk, 702 and EWN as well as Primedia Broadcasting and Crime Line.  

• Katy Katopodis: Eyewitness News editor-in-chief
Katy’s first job in broadcasting was with a community radio station and the radio bug bit immediately. Since then, she’s broken a number of major national and international news stories, was appointed the youngest ever News Editor at 702 in 2001 and was made editor-in-chief across all four Primedia Broadcasting stations a few years later.

She is a talented current affairs presenter and in addition to her radio work, she also hosted a show on the dedicated Oscar channel during the infamous trial. She has written a book, “I’m Missing News”, which takes a candid look at the challenges of trying to balance motherhood with a career in hard news. Katy is the current Deputy Chairperson of The South African National Editor’s Forum.

Katy strongly drives innovation at EWN. In addition to coaching and managing her team to deliver breaking news that is independent and credible, she also pushes the EWN news brand into new territories as she has driven the development of the EWN digital footprint. Under her leadership, EWN has won numerous awards for its digital platforms and has also been named Publisher of the Year at the bookmarks. EWN boasts an app, social media followings that tally hundreds of thousands and the brand continually finds new ways to connect with audiences including e-mail newsletters and WhatsApp updates.

Katy has an extensive list of accolades to her name including being named the 2013 National Press Club/North West University Editor of the Year.

• Thabisile Mbete: 702 Station Manager
In June 2016, Thabisile Mbete took up her new appointment as 702 station manager. Thabisile previously served as group content editor where she managed the content strategy on Primedia Broadcasting’s four radio stations: 947, KFM, 702, CapeTalk, and Eyewitness News, as well as online and social media. Her role was to ensure the editorial integrity of content for all brands and ensure it is free from political and commercial interference. Before being appointed the group content editor, Thabisile was the executive producer for the John Robbie Show.

The intersection between politics, economics and social issues has always fascinated Thabisile. Thabisile studied towards a National Diploma in Journalism at the former Technikon Natal from 1994 to 1996 but unfortunately did not complete the course due to financial constraints. Then from 2008 to 2012 she went back to school and completed her BA Development Studies at the University of Johannesburg.

She is currently reading towards an MA in Development Studies at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University with research interests in the field of development cooperation within the BRICS grouping of countries.

• Amy Rusike - 947 Programme Manager
The youngest member of Primedia Broadcasting’s senior management team has rapidly risen through the ranks at the broadcaster with her keen sense for what works on radio, and her effective work ethic and management style.

Amy holds a Journalism Honours in Popular Culture from Rhodes University. After completing her qualification, Amy began her career with Cue Radio in Grahamstown, where she held the role of reporter, producer and marketing manager from 2009 to 2011. She then worked her way up to radio teaching assistant at the University before landing a job at Highway Africa, where she filled the role of multimedia executive producer and coordinator. In 2010, Amy received the Rhodes Investec Top 100 Students Award for Media Leadership.

In 2012, Amy bagged a job at Primedia Broadcasting and until 2014, she was responsible for effectively coordinating the daily running of the 947 programming department. In 2014, she was promoted to 947 Programming Operations Supervisor until 2015 when she was yet again promoted to 947 Programme Manager.

Written by: Romaana Naidoo / Primedia Broadcasting
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