Humans of RCL FOODS – Israel Ngobeni

Israel lives to make an impact

Israel Ngobeni is a man on a mission. He wants to change lives for the better, both at work and in his community. It’s his way of leaving a legacy that matters.  

Israel grew up on a farm near Komatipoort. Money was scarce and he only started school when he was 12. Despite this, when he was in Grade 10 he was selected for the TSB Sugar Gifted Learners Programme, which helped him do well in matric. He then received a bursary from TSB to pursue his dream of becoming a Mechanical Engineer and joined our Komati Mill as an Engineer-in-Training when he graduated.  After successfully completing the programme, he was tasked with leading people who were older and more experienced than him – he succeeded by being humble, showing respect, and creating a positive team spirit.   

Determined to keep stretching himself to make a bigger impact, after working for seven years at Komati Mill he moved to Malelane Mill to gain more experience. In a quest for further career growth, Israel went to work in other sugar mills for few years as a Consulting Mechanical Engineer and Engineering Manager. In 2021 he returned ‘home’ to Malelane Mill as Projects and Packaging Manager, now with a much bigger team of around 400 people. In August last year he moved back to Komati Mill as Technical Manager.

Whether at work or in his community, he strives to unleash the potential of those around him – because he knows first-hand what a difference it makes.

Besides his family and community, Israel’s biggest supports have been RCL FOODS and its people who have walked alongside him and given him opportunities along the way. “The business’ support helped kickstart my career and life. Without that I’d be telling a totally different story. They gave me this opportunity and I’m grateful for that,” he says.

Israel believes that achieving excellent results and leaving a legacy depends on hard work and developing personal skills. He put himself through a postgraduate diploma in Business Administration in 2019 and was recently accepted to pursue a Masters Degree  in Business Leadership. Last year he also attended the RCL FOODS/Gibs Senior Leadership Programme.

What Israel loves most about RCL FOODS is that it cares about its employees and its surrounding communities. “RCL FOODS makes a huge difference within the communities wherein it operates. Working here gives me an opportunity to plough back to the community that raised me,” he explains. His wish for the community is to eradicate poverty by creating opportunities for empowerment. This is all part of delivering on his personal purpose: unleashing people’s “God-given potential”.

Well done Israel for giving back as you rise!