The national carrier's incoming interim CEO, Matshela Seshibe, made a visible difference during his time at Air Chefs, drawing praise for strong leadership that has improved the organisation.
Before turning around Air Chefs, SAA's catering arm, the closest its incoming acting group chief executive, Matshela Seshibe, had come to managing flight was his time at Daybreak Farms. The reason Seshibe left Daybreak Farms was because of a smear campaign - and he was exonerated in an internal investigation.
Before moving into the agricultural sector, he had gained significant experience in the broader food industry through stints with Unilever, Tiger Brands and Coca-Cola. He later served as the managing director of Albany Bakeries.
None of those points on his CV demonstrates any aviation experience. But there he was, saying "management is turning over every rock to ensure that we expose all areas of waste and potential inefficiencies in the business to drive productivity" in answer to parliamentary portfolio committee questions about the national carrier's largely negative audit outcomes.
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Why? Because the outgoing chief executive, John Lamola, who leaves his position at the end of the month, resigned abruptly on 10 April, citing personal reasons.
Seshibe inherits a notoriously complex beast. SAA is plagued by severe systemic issues, and the Auditor-General has warned that the airline remains a going concern with "material uncertainties".
For seven consecutive financial years, audited entities...
