“Business is a life cycle,” said Ralph Fletcher, CEO of Topco Media, when I asked him to take us through what drives his work.
He explained that just as people go through different stages in their careers, organisations also face cycles of growth and challenge. At Topco, his team looks beyond numbers like turnover and profitability, instead studying culture, values, gender empowerment, and inclusion to understand what truly makes a business thrive.
That philosophy is at the heart of Topco’s awards and conferences. Ralph was clear that it’s not about who spends the most on initiatives, but about the measurable impact of those programmes and whether their success can be transferred to others.
This approach is why the Nedbank Top Empowerment Awards and the Standard Bank Top Women Conference exist as separate but complementary platforms, each creating focused spaces for communities of women leaders and black entrepreneurs to drive change.
Ralph also shared how he constantly challenges his team to dream bigger, even when it feels impossible. During COVID, they grew their digital events from 3,000 to 25,000 delegates, and this year combined that reach with 1,000 people in person, making it their most inclusive conference yet.
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For the Topco CEO, innovation is rooted in listening carefully to audiences, while leadership is about empowering teams, believing in young people, and creating a culture built on integrity, energy, and purpose.
Watch the full interview here:
The Joburg Reporter 
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