How this entrepreneur took the plunge to start recruitment company focused on those with disabilities

“Entrepreneurship helps you gain a new sense of self-awareness. You start to understand who you are. You start to realise your strengths and start to see another side to yourself that you didn’t know even existed.”

So says South African Ntsoaki Phali, founder of Beyond Ability Talent Solutions and the recent winner of the 2017 Woman of Stature’s Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Her company, started in 2009, specialises in the recruitment, training and placement of people with disabilities into employment. It also works with firms to help them adapt their workspaces to better cater for employees with different physical capabilities and has worked with large clients that include the likes of Discovery Health and Volvo.

Addressing a need

In 1998 the South African Department of Labour introduced the Employment Equity Act, which aims to protect employees from unfair discrimination and ensure that businesses play their part in readdressing the social and economic imbalances in society by providing qualified people from marginalised groups with better employment opportunities. These include the racial groups that have been left disadvantaged under the apartheid regime, as well as women and people with disabilities.

For companies with 50 or more employees, or with a turnover higher than the industry-specified threshold, non-compliance with this Act can result in significant fines – ranging from 2% to 10% of a company’s annual turnover. On the other hand, those businesses that do comply can receive tax benefits. Either way, businesses in South Africa are incentivised to meet the Act’s employment equity standards and ensure diversity in their workforces.

Phali became aware of this while working as the human resources coordinator at South African Breweries during 2008 and 2009. She had been mandated to employ people with disabilities, but struggled with the task.

“I realised it didn’t have to do with a shortage of talented people with disabilities; it’s just that there is more to recruiting people with disabilities than just getting them on board.”