The Sunday Mail
Michael Tome
DETERMINED, consistent and goal-oriented are some of the few words to describe the man.
Having started as a 19-year-old learner receptionist at A’Zambezi River Lodge in Zimbabwe’s resort town of Victoria Falls on May 1, 1988, it was easy for many to conclude that the young man would go round and round doing menial jobs.
No one knew the diligence and willpower that was driving the young man.
According to renowned governance expert Herbert Nkala: “I laughed and fell down” when the young man back then in 1989 told me he had a dream to become a pilot and let alone general manager of the majestic A’Zambezi River Lodge, which I superintended at the time.
This ably describes the person that is Felix Gwimbi’s stature, back then, and the amount of ambition he carried around in his mind.
A positive mental attitude was the key driver of this young fellow.
His father was determined to see the young man follow his steps as a policeman and become one, but the young man had a divergent career view.
He, thus, found himself looking for a job at a local hotel in Victoria Falls, where the father was posted at the time.
In his two-year stint with the hotel, the young Gwimbi managed to become a full- time receptionist, cashier and night auditor.
“When I noticed that I was now enjoying the career path I had taken, I decided to further my education in line with what I was doing,” said Mr Gwimbi.
Coincidentally, after noticing the vigour and resolve in the young man, the hotel management in 1991 sent him to Kenya Utalii College, which is one of Africa’s leading hospitality and tourism training institutions, supported through a scholarship from the Swiss government.
From 1989 to 1991, the young Mr Gwimbi trained in front office operations at the hotel school.
“When I left for Kenya, my then boss Victor Shamu said we do not want to lose you and, thus, decided to bond me to their institution.
“Upon graduation, he became the best international student, and from that point, other local hoteliers sought for his services, but his heart was attached to the A’Zambezi River Lodge, where he then went back to assume a new position as front office manager.
“After a lot of good feedback, Mr Gwimbi was promoted and transferred to join the Ambassador Hotel and worked there between 1991 and 1995 as front office manager.
“As a front office manager at Ambassador Hotel, he secured a scholarship to The Hague hospitality business school in the Netherlands, where he did food and beverages management, referred to as full hotel scope, from November 1995 to 1996.
“At the time of his return, Rainbow Tourism Group (RTG) had just invested in Chimanimani Hotel. He was assigned to his first executive position as general manager at Chimanimani Hotel in 1996.
“At Chimanimani Hotel, I trained the staff and put in place systems. Resultantly, the hotel made money. My team did very well.”
After noticeable growth of business at the newly established Chimanimani Hotel, RTG decided to relocate and appoint Mr Gwimbi as Ambassador Hotel general manager, overseeing operations at Chimanimani Hotel concurrently.
“At one point, I was the general manager of Ambassador Hotel here in Harare, managing operations at the Chimanimani Hotel, at the same time overseeing the refurbishment of RTG hotel in Victoria Falls,” said Mr Gwimbi.
After an illustrious career at the RTG, Mr Gwimbi was head-hunted to join Innscor as Ocean Basket general manager between April 2000 and July 2003.
Since then, Mr Gwimbi has been a serial general manager and executive with different companies in Zimbabwe, Namibia and Zambia.
Other notable positions he has held to date include managing director at Eastlea Spar; executive director at Global Marketing and Trading; private pilot at Guthrie Aviation (2008); sales and marketing director at Fresh Bake Bakeries; operations manager at Innscor Retail Division; technical expert and general manager at Protea Hotel in Ondangwa, Namibia, where he was appointed by the United Nations Development Programme; and a stint at Simbisa International Limited, Zambia.
He is now the current general manager of Cresta Lodge (Sango).
Along the way, Mr Gwimbi managed to enhance his academic qualifications and now holds a Master of Science degree in Strategic Management from Chinhoyi University of Technology. He also holds a Bachelor of Technology degree in Marketing from the University of South Africa.
He obtained a Diploma in Marketing (IMM) in 1998.
Most importantly, the man finally obtained a Private Pilot’s licence in June 2008, fulfilling his childhood dream.
Mr Gwimbi said he attributes his success to a positive mental attitude, which, he notes, is a major and common characteristic of all successful people.
“I don’t accept failure easily. I push for success in whatever I do. Failure is never part of my vocabulary, so whatever I touch should turn into gold.
“My other strength is I do not care much about what people say. A lot of people live for others. I have told myself that if I’m going to worry and please everyone, say, the 15 million people in Zimbabwe, what will become of me? I don’t ignore society but I believe in myself,” he said.
Mr Gwimbi said his long career of managing people has been successful, as he takes time to understand the background and different needs of his employees.
He said managers should always make sure their staff is motivated, mainly by giving incentives to those who would have excelled.
“For you to manage people, you should understand that every individual is different. So, when I join any organisation, I make an effort to sit with my employees, get to know their family history and where they are so that I deal with them differently. If I don’t know that, I might end up touching wounds which might get them demotivated.”
