As we sit and chat with her on a chilly day in June, Maggie Mojapelo is looking forward to travelling. She needs a holiday, her team will agree, and she says she’s going to delete the email app from her phone to ensure she enjoys a proper break.
Still, she insists she’ll make time for us. As we speak, the launch of her company’s rebrand is approaching, and Mojapelo’s insight and authority are needed for information, guidance and creative decisions. She’s been hands-on the entire process.
It’s also how she’s run The Human Touch, a management consultancy, for over a decade.
To hear Mojapelo speak of her journey thus far, you can’t help but recognise its success is a testament to nothing and no one but her – a woman who’s spent over five decades gathering knowledge, getting experience and making an impact in organisations worldwide.
Where it all began: Inspirations and entrepreneurship
“It started with my father,” says Mojapelo. He was a man who’d struggled every day of his life, but refused to let hardship stop him from being a provider to his family and the broader community, while pushing his children to be the best they could be.
To a young Mojapelo, this meant she had a responsibility – a responsibility to show him that she could do what he did, and do it even better. It was a way for her to celebrate him and his belief in her.
The road ahead wasn’t easy. Growing up in a small rural village, her home lacked both electricity and running water. Her mother, juggling three demanding jobs, worked full-time while also raising seven children. At just 10 years old, inspired by her mother’s entrepreneurial spirit, Mojapelo started selling tomatoes.
“I was raised by people who were hungry for something. So, I know nothing – I just know hunger, and I know follow-through. That has always made me look at what I can do.’” ~ Maggie Mojapelo.
Wife, mother, teacher, leader
When Mojapelo introduces herself, she likes to start with her family. “I’m a daughter,” she says, “I’m a wife, and I’m a mother of two beautiful children.”
Only then does she mention she’s a sought-after executive, revered board member and chair of multiple committees, a consultant and the co-founder of a company that’s been shaking up the HR industry since 2011.
But that success didn’t happen overnight.
Mojapelo’s academic journey took many turns. She initially pursued medicine to honour her father’s wishes but soon realised her true calling lay elsewhere. She explored teaching, pharmacy and psychology. She achieved an MBA from Henley Business School and completed multiple leadership programmes at prestigious institutions such as Harvard and Wits Business School.
In 1985, she met her husband-to-be, gave birth to their daughter and got married. “My husband is still my mentor to this very day,” Mojapelo says, a wide smile brightening her face.
“He was the one who told me, after we’d just gotten married, that I should register for psychology – what I’d always wanted to do. So I did.”
Even as she raised her children and took care of her home, Mojapelo was working full-time, investing in her career. Led by her inquisitive mind and equipped with an intimidating array of qualifications and credentials, she stepped into various significant roles in different organisations across South Africa.
The girl who sold tomatoes soon became the woman transforming human resources functions for major corporations such as IBM, Nedbank, Avon Justine and Coca-Cola South Africa; the woman who was headhunted for her strategic vision and ability to align HR with business goals for top companies like McDonald’s South Africa; the woman who sat on board committees to provide much-needed expertise and strategic insight.
“I always start by considering the value I can add to an organisation. I always ask ‘what can I do for you?’ That has served me well for decades.” ~ Maggie Mojapelo.
The HR Touch becomes The Human Touch
In 2011, Mojapelo took the next bold step in her journey when she launched The HR Touch, an HR consultancy based in South Africa and, by her own account, “an expression of herself.”
Without financial support and external assistance, the launch felt like a risk. But Mojapelo wasn’t deterred. Years later, she speaks proudly of how “this black-owned company, a women-owned company, started by itself and continued to grow and lead by itself.”
The HR Touch grew rapidly. Soon, Mojapelo was running an end-to-end management consultancy that specialised in people performance. What she was doing (and had been doing since the very beginning) transcended HR, and years later, it was time to reaffirm that commitment to her clients, her team and the world.
Fast-forward to 2024. Mojapelo is turning 60 in September, and The HR Touch is rebranding as The Human Touch (THT). It’s a big year for the company, and no one is more excited than Mojapelo.
“Our job as The Human Touch is for companies to see that HR is actually a function that enables businesses to get value out of their key asset – people – and to create and sustain an environment that supports people to add exceptional value to their company. Our rebrand reflects that.” ~ Maggie Mojapelo.
A new era of HR
Often, people think that they can go into the consulting space because “I can think”. At The Human Touch, they know it takes much more than that. “We bring the experience on the ground,” says Mojapelo.
“We are not just getting into this because one day we woke up and didn’t know what else to do. This choice was something by design; we have filled ourselves up with the right knowledge, the right experience, and the right thinking, which we now bring into an organisation and show the value we add. We understand you. We can customise every problem based on what the problem is all about.”
“If you want to rally your organisation in any of the services we provide, rest assured you will be partnering with an organisation that will provide you with a well considered, fit-for-purpose solution. We don’t simply leave you with the ‘what’ – we enable you with the ‘how.’” ~ Maggie Mojapelo.
What’s next?
As The Human Touch embarks on this new era, Mojapelo shows no signs of slowing down. She’s ready to turn 60, explore the world, enjoy the rebrand celebrations and continue to meet with organisations to drive people performance.
For all of us lucky enough to watch or simply hear Mojapelo speak, the journey ahead promises to be as inspiring as the story so far.
“The Human Touch is an expression of my personal experience, my upbringing, my personal beliefs, and myself as a child who was raised by people who had nothing but made something. That continues to inspire me; you don’t have to wait for someone to do something for you. You can do it, and you need to enable others to make something out of something.” ~ Maggie Mojapelo.
The Human Touch offers comprehensive services in consulting, training, executive search, executive coaching and HR outsourcing.
