Hitachi Energy is championing its Diversity 360 approach

Diversity 360 is Hitachi Energy’s vision to ensure diversity and inclusion are at the core of its long-term business success. Diversity 360 is an employee-centred approach designed to nurture diversity of thought and embrace the power of connections to foster innovation for our customers and partners. It also encourages lifelong learning and believes diversity and collaboration equal great innovation.

The Diversity 360 vision is integrated into all of Hitachi Energy’s practices and policies, which foster female acceleration through global platforms and its Female Talent Development Programme, underpinned by Our Leadership Pillars. The company has set clear targets for recruiting and developing women in leadership roles, aiming to increase its female diversity from 19% to 25% by 2025.

As we celebrate August as Women’s Month in South Africa, we would like to highlight the achievements of exceptional local female talent at Hitachi Energy by profiling three leading women.

Tracy Golovey, Country HR Manager: Southern Africa, works with business leaders as a core member of the business management team. She leads a lean team locally that is also part of regional and global teams that collaborate closely, partnering on challenges, finding solutions, and learning and growing together.

Tracy has a degree in Human Resources and completed the Management Advancement Programme at the Wits Business School and an internal Management Leadership Programme. She was instrumental, together with the local Learning and Development partner, in implementing local women in leadership development programmes to equip and prepare more female leaders at all levels in the workplace in Southern Africa.

“It has been an eye-opener joining a different industry and a truly matrix organization. It has been empowering to be given the trust to take on elevated responsibility within the HR function, often facing something new. I have learned and grown throughout the journey and continue to grow,” says Tracy. Diversity and inclusion are long-term goals of the Diversity 360 initiative that leadership is committed to in terms of its leadership pillars and female acceleration and development. “This is a positive step in the right direction and shows the company’s commitment, which is great.”

Clair Mandy Koegelenberg started out as a production planner for traction transformers, where a notable safety record was building 150 units and delivering them with zero recordable incidents. It was Clair’s duty to ensure the transformers were built in time and that the correct stock was available to complete the project. “I worked together with a diverse group in the factory and was treated with the utmost respect as a female,” adds Clair. Based on the successful project, she has progressed to the Transformers business unit within the supply chain department and is happy to be part of a growing team.

Clair commenced her Electromechanical studies in 2010 and then moved to Supply Chain Management, where she has over ten years of field experience. “Being here for a decade, I can truly say we are becoming more inclusive about women in the workplace. I can actively see more and more women being hired within various business areas, including the engineering side.” Clair is a member of the Employment Equity and Skills Development Committee at Hitachi Energy and adds that clear goals have been set in this regard.

Tshegofatso Monnamme is a Tender and Quotation Specialist for High Voltage (HV) products and works closely with the factories that manufacture HV equipment to ensure all customer requirements are met and also in compiling tenders. Tshegofatso has a National Diploma in Electrical Engineering (Heavy Current) from the Vaal University of Technology and a BTech from the University of Johannesburg.

She started working at Hitachi Energy in 2020 as a trainee engineer and was appointed permanently in October last year. “It has been a great honour to be part of such a prestigious organisation,” says Tshegofatso. She pays tribute to her Manager Confidence Mabulwana for his exemplary leadership.

“Hitachi Energy is working hard to create an environment whereby all employees become the best version of themselves. It has significantly changed the narrative by empowering females and developing women in leadership roles,” concludes Tshegofatso.

Hitachi Energy remains committed to championing its Diversity 360 approach and mindset in its daily work. We are continuously developing our talents, experts, and leaders to further advance their professional skills and knowledge, which enables our business to provide superior, high-quality products, systems, and services to our customers. We have made a promise to create economic, environmental, and social value for a sustainable energy future. We champion an inclusive culture powered by individual differences, collaboration, and diversity of thought.