This article was written by Rosie Mullender and developed in collaboration with The Guardian.
Some people flinch at the prospect of a challenge. Not Fiona Masuku , however. While growing up in Zimbabwe, the 38-year-old developed a fascination with the world of business, inspired by her entrepreneurial grandmother, and a keen enthusiasm for problem solving.
Now, as director of Creative CFO Cape Town, a financial services company that offers strategic tools and services for small and medium-sized businesses, she puts that passion to good use.
“| love solving problems, which is perhaps my greatest strength," the management accountant tells me from the company's office in South Africa. “While other people might be presented with a tricky scenario and want to run, | think: ‘Yes, let's embrace this!’
With her bubbly personality, Masuku also relishes the opportunity to dispel preconceived notions about the profession, for example, that you need to be very serious. “I can still have fun while | crunch numbers," she says.
As a child, Masuku's grandmother always taught her to follow her own path. “My three sisters and | were raised by my grandparents, and it was quite a traditional upbringing - my grandfather went to work, while my grandmother looked after us," she says. “But she was a teacher before she had children, and worked as a part-time tailor, and that spirit of entrepreneurship was alive in us, too.
“She was very open-minded, and encouraged us to do what we love - but at the same time, she wouldn't accept failure, or watch us wallow in it. She pushed us to be the best we could be, and to be able to take care of ourselves as adults.”
While her sisters gravitated towards medicine and engineering, Masuku knew from an early age that she wanted to work in business and finance.
“Even in high school, | had an inclination towards mathematics, economics and accounting,” she says. “One of my favourite subjects was management of business, and | realised | wanted to get into that space, because it was what | really loved."
