At VBKOM, we believe it is our purpose and mission to improve our clients' lives. However, to make a difference, we first needed to look at how we operate as a company.
There is an old saying that goes, “Home is not a place… it’s a feeling.”
The Corporate Services Business Unit, under the guidance of Lalieu Marais, strives to make VBKOM more than just an optimal workplace.
Lalieu Marais was the first female employee at VBKOM and subsequently led the way forward for the company, creating more opportunities for women from the mining industry to play a role in the growth and success of VBKOM.
With her background in Financial Management, Lalieu leads a group of individuals who help ensure an optimal work environment. These individuals blend different qualities to thrive as a team:
The Corporate Services team uses the fundamental VBKOM values and WHY to empower the greater team to achieve success.
B-BBEE Level 1 Certificate
VBKOM Terms of Trade
VBKOM Terms of Trade (International)
Lalieu joined the VBKOM-team in 2009, and she was the very first employee to be hired apart from the five founding members. As the first female to join the all-male group, she pioneered the way forward for VBKOM to give opportunities to more women in the mining industry.
Before starting her journey with VBKOM, Lalieu’s career path took various turns before she realised that she loves accounting. Lalieu went from a BSc in Biochemistry to Human Movement Sciences before she started her BCom degree in Financial Management and has not looked back since. One lesson Lalieu carries with her through her chosen path is that, “If ‘Plan A’ did not work, keep your cool; the alphabet has 25 more letters!”
Apart from being very active at work, Lalieu is also very busy after hours. She is mom to three very beautiful young children, and wife to the love of her life, Werner. When talking about her family, Lalieu’s whole being lights up, and she says, “I look forward to seeing my kids grow into little humans and being able to learn something new from them every day.”
She also enjoys running and cycling regularly to keep both her body and her mind healthy, and one of her greatest personal achievements to date has been sky-diving and competing in the Cape Argus for VBKOM in 2011 and 2016.
Gloria is VBKOM’s “kortbroek & plakkies”, no-nonsense, right to the point bookkeeper. She joined VBKOM in 2012 after working as a claims clerk at an underwriter in the same building VBKOM now owns.
Growing up in Cullinan, she firmly believed that she will become an attorney, but after school, her sister, Claudene, convinced Gloria to put her knack for numbers to better use, and to rather venture into bookkeeping, and she recalls, “I applied for the accounting job, got the job, and here I am today.”
At VBKOM she enrolled and completed her Higher Certificate in Accounting, and she is currently enrolled for a BCom Financial Accounting degree. She looks forward to completing her studies within the next two to three years, and to finally have her degree in hand.
Outside of the office, Gloria is quite active and loves nature and the outdoors. At school, she was an avid athlete, and she and her husband, Gerhard, enjoy Mountain Biking every weekend. When Gloria gets the chance, you will see her running, taking part in events like Muddy Princess, or any activity where she can channel some of her sportiness.
Gloria and her husband Gerhard have been married for six years, and they recently purchased their first home together. She is looking forward to starting a family and raise a few children in the near future.
While navigating the global pandemic, Sipho joined the VBKOM-team in 2021 as internal communications officer. Prior to joining VBKOM he worked at the University of Johannesburg as a student library assistant and tutor at the university where he learned a lot about responsibility.
Sipho was born in Qwa-Qwa in the Free State and grew up in the East Rand where he became very active in school sports, specifically rugby. Sipho dreamed about becoming a professional rugby player when he was growing up, he played Inside Center for Hoerskool Brandwag XV and Valke provisionally.
When talking about how his career path is developing, he shares that “my background and how I grew up is what influenced me to be ambitious and dedicated towards a better future. I come from dust.”
One of Sipho’s hidden talents is being multilingual in English, Zulu, Sesotho, and Afrikaans, which enables him to be very adept at learning other languages and understanding the non-verbal nuances in communication.
Something that Sipho is determined to master is market trading by growing his critical thinking, focus, and discipline skillsets to be successful at this.
Maditaba Annah Dladla, or more fondly known by her loved ones as Ndabi, joined the VBKOM team in September 2020 as a temporary assistant to the VBKOM executive team. In September 2021 Maditaba accepted a permanent position with VBKOM.
As a little girl growing up in Orange Farm in Johannesburg, she dreamed of becoming a social worker. Maditaba has tremendous compassion and empathy with people from all walks of life, and she is passionate about helping others. Maditaba always wears a bright and welcoming smile.
She enjoys the challenges and learning opportunities she is faced with at VBKOM, and she believes this is the most satisfying part of her career.
Maditaba strives to bettering herself, and to exhibit skills that impress and create value.
Maditaba and her husband have two small children together, one son and one daughter, and she looks forward to building a safe home for them soon. She is also looking forward to completing her diploma in business management
Bongile is an experienced HR/Payroll Administrator with more than three years' experience in the IT, professional services and Consulting Industries. His expertise lies in the full cycle Transformation administration, payroll, payroll taxation, Industrial relations, Skills development Admin, Recruitment & On-boarding, Policies & procedures, compliance and general HR Administration. He holds a National Diploma in Human Resources Management and an Advanced Diploma in Human Resources Development , and is certified in Sage VIP Premier, SBCPP, Xero accounting with excellent knowledge of Labour Law legislation.
Krugersdorp-native Mbulelo, more fondly known by his friends and family as “Fresh”, grew up in Kagiso dreaming of becoming a professional soccer player. Mbulelo is a very realistic young man and focused on his schoolwork as a “back-up” to his professional sports dream.
He shares his reason for venturing into Accounting as a profession, “Coming from Kagiso, an area which I can say is relatively disadvantaged, I wanted to learn how money works so I could improve the financial conditions surrounding me but when I got to varsity I realised that having a good financial standing is the backbone of any thriving individual, business, and economy therefore not only can I improve my own financial standing but play my part in adding financial value to individuals, businesses and ultimately the South African economy as a whole.”
The BCom Finance holder from the University of Johannesburg has a personal goal of mastering stock exchange trading. Seeing himself as an analyst, he spends most of his time watching documentaries, video gaming, and playing some football.
Mbulelo lives life by the motto - “Whatever you are, be a good one.”
Joyce, or more lovingly known as “Joycie”, joined the VBKOM-family in 2018, and she ensures that the office is always in top-notch condition and that everyone can enjoy the delicious coffee daily.
Joyce grew up in Limpopo, and her life’s passion is to one day become a registered nurse. Her caring nature pulls her towards helping people, even if it is just to be able to listen or talk them through a problem. One of Joyce’s greatest dreams is to work as a nurse for the elderly.
Towards the end of 2019, Joyce made the brave trip to Zimbabwe, to visit her mother’s sister. Joyce is the first person in her family to have traveled to her aunt, and this has been one of her greatest achievements to date.
Joyce is extremely spiritual, and she finds her absolute power within her religion. When Joyce is facing hardships, she turns to her church for guidance.
At the office, Joyce is always smiling and likes making conversation by sharing interesting stories. She listens to understand and to learn, which she then applies to act in the best interest of the team.
Andries grew up in Belfast, and as a young boy, he dreamed of becoming a Commercial Farmer. He has always had the proverbial “green-thumb” and has an absolute passion for gardening.
Before he joined the VBKOM-family in 2012, he worked in construction but soon realised that he does not get satisfaction from being surrounded by concrete, bricks, and building materials.
Andries forms part of the Corporate Services team, and he is the shy gentleman of the group. During any general knowledge trivia, Andries is the person that everyone wants on his team – Andries has an extremely wide general knowledge and knows a lot about everything.
When Andries reflects on his time at VBKOM, one of the greatest achievements was him obtaining his drivers’ license in 2015, and then marrying his wife, Christine in 2017. Andries and his wife have two busy boys, that keep them both young at heart. When talking about his family, he says “my family life is looking happy, happy and happy.”
Andries put his construction knowledge to good use in January 2019, and he undertook the massive task of building his family home with his own hands.
Upon asking what he is looking forward to, he replied that he is excited to complete an electrical wiring course in he started in 2020.