Tuned in to FM [part 1]

Women’s Month allows us the opportunity to listen, learn and tune into the experiences of woman leaders in the radio business. Broadcasting has been on the edge of democratic principles and conversations and in many instances has opened the discussion to the change and evolution of society and its people. Focussing attention on women remains an integral part of this process.

In August, celebrating Women’s Month, our Audio Ambassador and Creative Consultant at MediaHeads 360 takes the opportunity to engage with senior leaders at public and commercial radio stations, touching on a variety of elements in the world of FM (female) broadcasting.

In Mount Edgecombe, KwaZulu-Natal,  Minenhle Dlamini, managing director of Gagasi FM, runs a commercial station that is equal parts street-smart and strategy led. It is a balance of cool and calculated as well and cutting-edge commercial. Having been appointed directly after the 2021 KwaZulu-Natal unrest, Dlamini is a radio creator at heart who’s embraced the role of Managing Director with a fresh approach and a deep sense of wanting to leave a legacy.

Across the country at SABC Headquarters at Auckland Park, Louise Jooste, business manager for RSG, steers an 88-year-old public service institution that carries the weight of heritage and the purpose of mandate and responsibility as part of the SABC radio offering.

With a deep background in marketing, Jooste celebrates 20 years of public service broadcasting in November this year. As a mother to two sons in their 20s her career and personal life have grown from toddler, to teen, to adult as she approaches a career milestone.

Both women sit at the intersection of tradition and transformation, each tuning their staff and audience into different parts of the radio dial.

Non-linear careers

Neither Dlamini nor Jooste followed a neat, plotted career path in their early radio careers.

Dlamini’s first auditions at campus and commercial stations ended in what she calls “bombing out”, more than once. The early rejections forced her into self-reflection.

“Sometimes we’re too focused on what we think is made for us. You have to pivot and still stay in the same space,” she says. Having taken advice from some industry stalwarts and taking a hard look at her aspirations, she moved from wanting to be on air to taking a more creative and content driven role.

Jooste began in a mining-sector drawing office, a male-dominated environment where creativity was a luxury. When a broadcasting marketing job was advertised at the SABC she immediately imagined glam celebrity moments and events.

Her experience over the years has proven that radio is still a job, but the medium’s blank canvas of opportunity has kept her motivated and inspired, “You decide what you want to say, how you want to say it, and what you want to achieve with it.”

The meaning of mentorship

For Jooste, mentorship has been both received and given. She credits RSG’s former station manager, Magdaleen Kruger, with drawing her into operational decision-making long before it was in her job description.

“It’s important that you continuously learn, otherwise you become stagnant,” Jooste says. Having learnt from her time being mentored she has now taken on the role of mentor and is actively working with future leaders at the station.

Dlamini’s coaching came less formally. A GIBS general management programme paired her with a business coach whose lessons on resilience and people management still echo in her leadership style. Today, she turns to a small circle — including a banking-sector executive, who shares generously once a year, for perspective.

“Being an MD is also about taking care of people,” she notes. Radio remains a people-centric business both internally and externally and Dlamini believes her make-up as a woman leader allows her the edge to nurture and guide her team as well as acknowledge their success without her.

The impact of technology

Conversations around traditional media often reference technology and changing consumer habits. As strategic leaders in the media sector, both women have a clear idea of the opportunity and challenge that technology brings.

For Jooste, the signal that technology would redefine radio came when digital creators and social media started reshaping audience habits.

“If you don’t adapt, you’ll become irrelevant,” she says, pointing to RSG’s early website and podcasting initiatives, and a 200% social growth spurt in one quarter. She describes a space that was foreign but needed to be embraced, and an audience that relish engaging with the RSG brand on-line.

Dlamini traces her tech wake-up call to 2010, producing Gagasi’s breakfast show and pushing presenters to embrace Facebook.

“It’s such a normal thing now, but back then, they felt it was too intrusive.” Today, she’s exploring AI tools for speed-sensitive production: “Are you really going to wait for a voice artist when you could get AI to do it at 2am when you’re competing globally?”.

Creativity in crowded spaces

Dlamini admits that creativity feels harder now. “There are so many platforms showing creative work, you find yourself thinking, ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’”

The trick, she says, is to be risky without alienating audiences, and to measure success by engagement and reach. Listening to your audience is key and she shares that you will know when you’ve got it right or wrong. She shares that there is a space for digital natives but constantly reminds her team that a 360 approach offers a holistic commercial approach which is key to the Gagasi strategy.

Jooste thrives on the “no rules” potential of the medium. She recalls RSG’s Liefde in die Donker campaign, which paired strangers for audio-only conversations in an effort to match like-minded people in a dating environment. Think Tinder meets Farmer Looking for a Wife. It is a great example of pushing format boundaries. “You can take something visual and make it work for radio,” she says.

Language as an identifier

At Gagasi FM, language is inseparable from identity. The station’s signature ‘Zunglish’, a blend of English and isiZulu, is still strong and is not going anywhere.

Dlamini sees a growing pride in cultural rootedness: “There’s this wokeness about my identity lying within my locality. To be proudly KZN means you understand the language, speak the language, and relate to the culture.” Gagasi’s inseparable link to isi-Zulu and Zulu culture also offers an incredible opportunity to serve audience and advertisers, a current focus for Dlamini and her team.

RSG’s challenge is different: preserving the integrity of Afrikaans while embracing its dialectal diversity. “Someone in Namaqualand speaks differently from someone in Pretoria,” Jooste explains. Bringing those voices to air has helped more listeners feel at home, though change must be gradual.

The RSG audience is quick to engage the station on language usage and what they feel is the proper usage. Jooste shares that RSG is a proud custodian for all Afrikaans speakers and that the station will continue to support the use of language to encourage diversity.

The question of remale influence

Both leaders acknowledge the progress women have made in radio — and the gaps that remain.

Jooste points out that RSG has had only two female station managers in its long history, but she sees a balance emerging, with women now leading many programming and marketing teams. She further shares that for a brand like RSG it is remarkable to think they’ve had two women lead the station for more than 25 years.

Dlamini speaks openly about on-air roles: “There are 100% too many female co-hosts and not enough anchors audition for roles.” She calls for grassroots training to give women confidence in leading shows. “Don’t always play the role of the sidekick. Take up space.” She believes we need to do more to inspire confidence in female talent and create environments where they feel comfortable to create and contribute.

Both agree the industry needs structured training to stay competitive. Dlamini sees a shortage of ready-to-go talent and a lack of workshops to teach presenters brand-building and content innovation. Jooste stresses the need to keep developing skills at every career stage: “Be willing to change and adapt — you can’t be stuck in a rut.”

Personal inspiration

Jooste’s motivation is the privilege of impact: “I can make or break a person’s life with the strategies I implement.” It could be a junior producer, someone looking for an interview or a musician seeking airplay, the responsibility is not lost on Jooste.

For Dlamini, it’s about legacy, leaving a stronger media landscape than she found: “I want Gagasi FM to be a home for talent that doesn’t want to leave KZN, this is their space, their future, their purpose.”

When questioned about a career outside of broadcasting, Dlamini shares she would be a dentist while Jooste quips that she’d  be living on an island.

The diverse thoughts, styles and approaches by both Dlamini and Jooste are what makes radio resonate and appeal to audiences. The ability to incorporate and be inclusive while remaining independent need to be celebrated and Women’s Month is a perfect opportunity to highlight the Female in fluence in FM broadcasting!