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THINK NEDBANK AND you're bound to wonder what happened to "those people". Seven years after the campaign that epitomised the end of an era at the group, the bank is still struggling to shrug off its elitist image, as portrayed in the manicured hunt for the Knysna seahorse and other similar upmarket adventures. While its competitors were building branches, acquiring clients and driving their retail presence, Nedbank was buying technology companies and even a top-flight law firm. Nedbank got left in the dust in the race for consumers and as a result has only a small share of South Africa's retail banking market.
Enter Ciko Thomas, new group executive: group marketing, communications and corporate affairs. Kiko? Syco? Sico? No, Ciko. Take your tongue, press it up to the roof of your mouth, just behind your top front teeth, tense it and pull it back quickly. That's the sound you're looking for! Ciko. Now say it 10 times quickly.
It's always been fashionable to emphasise your roots: the tougher your upbringing the more remarkable your success. Richard Branson wasn't educated at the poshest schools; nor was Alan Knott-Craig. Many captains of industry were imprisoned for their political beliefs. Everyone likes underdogs who pull themselves up by their bootstraps and make a success of life.
Therefore it's unsurprising to learn Thomas grew up on a farm in Somerset West, where his grandparents were labourers, and his urban parents worked in motor manufacturing in Uitenhage. The farm was owned by the Du Plessis family who spawned rugby greats Carel, Michael and Jacques. His childhood was "idyllic" - going between the farm and New Brighton outside Port Elizabeth. But by the time he was 14 in post-Rubicon speech SA, the world had changed dramatically. His parents - whose income was dependent on General Motors - both lost their jobs when the company disinvested. It caused the young Ciko to think on his feet.
"I relied on bursaries," Thomas says. "The school system was dysfunctional. I'd started school early and my friends, who were older than I, were getting into trouble. My mother has a picture of five of us from that time. Four of them are dead. Two of Aids-related illnesses and two related to crime. One was killed in a robbery; the other committed suicide when he knew he was going to be caught for committing a crime. I'm the only one left."
Thomas spent a post-matric year at St Andrews College in Grahamstown and won a scholarship to the University of Cape Town. "I needed a degree I could convert into a job quickly. I needed to earn money. A BA wasn't going to do that and finance courses required too much follow up, so I opted for a BSc," he says.
The year 1989 was a tumultuous one in South African politics: the year before FW de Klerk announced the unbanning of political parties and the release of Nelson Mandela. "I played hard, drank hard, toyi-toyied hard and ran hard down De Waal Drive when it was necessary. Some of my best friendships were formed there."
Those friends have also moved up the ladder into senior marketing and other positions in corporate SA.
Thomas followed what's become a traditional route for many top marketers: first working at Unilever, then SABMiller, with stints at M-Net, British American Tobacco and Absa thrown in for good measure. In two cases he played a pivotal role in brands that subsequently died an ignominious death. First was the margarine brand Enjoy and the infinitely more memorable Lion Lager. Neither exists today. I ask if that's an ominous sign for Nedbank.
"When I worked on it, I was envious I wasn't on the Rama account. I didn't appreciate Enjoy at the time, but the teachings were immense." The same at SA Breweries. He was part of the team that tried to rescue what was once SA's most consumed beer as volumes were declining by 30% to 40% a year. The failed experiment with the blue and silver label attached to the brown bottle was an attempt to appeal to the Kwaito generation. It bombed and the brand was dead. Thomas insists both experiences were useful and that he learned more from their failure than he would have from early success. He's presented the death of Lion as a case study at business schools.
"We did things in SAB that hadn't been done before. SAB is very structured and has great systems. We tried to innovate and broke the mould. It might not have worked for Lion but it laid the groundwork for what they're doing now with Millers and Peroni," Thomas says.
The entrepreneurial bug bit around 2000, when fresh out of an MBA funded by SAB, Thomas and a group of friends bought Enterprise Connection out of Connection Group. Management of the company then bought a stake from them and the firm was later sold to Faritec for a mixture of cash and shares, which the consortium offloaded, much to their relief, some time ago. Within a year Thomas was again in the headlines in a deal that saw him as a partner in SA's worst performing BMW dealership in downtown Johannesburg. Within 18 months it was one of the top 15 in the country, thanks to some clever contracts. Later, as part of black empowerment grouping Zwavhudi, he was approached to form part of an empowerment consortium that took up a stake in Barloworld. It was back to the relative comfort of the corporate environment and out of what he now refers to as the "entrepreneurial wilderness" - having learned that it's useful to have a substantial balance sheet behind you when you have big dreams and aspirations.
It's almost a year since he first received a call from head-hunters seeking to place him at Nedbank to fill a role vacated by Pinky Moholi, who returned to Telkom when Reuben September became CEO after the brief tenure of Papi Molotsane. Thomas declined - he says out of loyalty to Barloworld, where he was marketing its motor division. He provided a list of candidates he believed were suitable but late last year was approached directly by current boss Graham Dempster.
"It felt personal; I committed quickly," he says, after having what he describes as a frank discussion with Dempster and incoming CEO Mike Brown about the challenges Nedbank faces. "They're common challenges in a post-Lehmans world. There's so much potential to create a brand that really resonates with South Africans. Absa has done that well and has been talking to its clients in a real and engaging way. Others haven't been as successful." Thomas spent time at Absa and therefore has an affinity with its positioning. "Standard Bank has been blindsided by its own international ambitions and FirstRand's multi-brand approach has made it difficult for it to develop that emotional connection," he says.
What next then for Nedbank? Is "Make things happen" destined for the scrapheap? What about the annual "Nedbank challenge"? He says both are safe, while at the same time providing assurances the Nedbank brand will undergo an overhaul as it strives to be a more "South African" bank. However, matching a strong brand message with actual delivery is going to be tough. Nedbank's retail division is the smallest of SA's Big Four banks and rolling out infrastructure at a time when the financial sector is facing considerable headwinds to match a new brand promise is going to be tough. But that's the part that seems to get him going.
"Our world has changed. The environment is different; technology means we can reach people in new ways," appearing unconcerned by the enormity of the task ahead of him. First, though, he may need to do some shopping. He only has one green tie. Nedbank's outgoing CEO Tom Boardman has plenty. He might want to give a couple to the new guy in March as he heads out the door as an executive for the last time.
