Fundi Capital was awarded the prestigious Best Employer Brand Award 2023-24 at the South Africa Leadership Awards in Johannesburg on Friday. Hosted by the Employer Branding Institute; the World HRD Congress and Stars of the Industry Group, and endorsed by the Asian Confederation of Businesses, the award celebrates organisations dedicated to nurturing leaders and fostering talent aligned with their organisational vision and mission.

A key event on South Africa’s HR and marketing calendar, the 19th Employer Branding Awards were held in Sandton, Johannesburg on 19 April 2024. The event – which celebrates brand leadership across the world – once again brought together South Africa’s top brands and contributors to marketing and HR best practice.

A first-time entrant this year, Fundi Capital received the signature honour of being announced South Africa’s Best Employer Brand. Speaking at the event, Mala Suriah, Fundi CEO, dedicated the award to the collective team of over 200 employees across the country: “This award is testament to the incredible spirit and dedication that powers Fundi and empowers the customers and clients we serve. It speaks to our ‘people-first strategy’ and our purpose as an organisation; how we bring these to life as lived experiences each and every day. We thank the Institute for this recognition and honour.”

As the country’s single source for student funding and student success, Suriah notes Fundi’s commitment as a company that does “good business”. “Enabling student success is an inherent part of our DNA. We have been serving South African communities for over 26 years; unlocking the education dreams of over 1,7 million students to date. Our current team members – including myself – stand on the shoulders of giants: the pioneers who came before us who deeply understood the power of education as an enabler.”

She adds that the community Fundi serves is both challenging and inspiring – creating the ideal HR platform to develop and grow the internal team. “As a solutions-driven business, we’re passionate about providing financial access to students, as well as the tools they need to succeed in their studies. Where a solution doesn’t exist, we’re committed to innovating to find one.” This has seen the evolution of solutions including FundiConnect, a navigation platform that guides students throughout their journey – giving them the information they need to make critical decisions when they need it. The company has also just launched FundiMatch; a careers platform powered by psychometric assessments that empowers students to make informed career choices.

Suriah adds that where Fundi’s solutions cannot meet student requirements, they actively find alternative routes to help: “In the case of funding the ‘missing middle’ for example – where students neither qualify for NSFAS nor traditional funding – we raise funds through Fundi Foundation to overcome this debilitating financial exclusion. To date, we have assisted over 1000 students through our fund-raising initiatives.” 

As for the future, Suriah believes that the best is yet to come: “We will actively continue investing in our purpose-driven high-performance culture. Our internal programme themed ‘I am Fundi’ will continue to inspire, challenge, motivate and support individual Fundis on their own growth journeys based on the unique formula driving our people first strategy. For us, it remains about creating vocations as opposed to careers; understanding that happy passionate people can become happy passionate employees who enable loyal customers and ensure long-term business sustainability. This is what we are all about as a brand, and as people. Keep watching this space!” she concludes.

For more information about Fundi, visit www.fundi.co.za.

For more information about the Fundi Foundation, visit www.fundifoundation.org