Edited by Megan O’Connor
Throughout August, Plumbing Africa is celebrating the women making their mark on the plumbing industry. From plumbers and business owners to leaders, specialists, educators and industry professionals, this series shines a light on the women whose skills, determination and experience are helping to shape the future of plumbing. Here, we interview and shine a spotlight on Thabelo Raphala, founder of Eliora Research and Training Institute | Eliora Next Generation Entrepreneurs.
Thabelo Raphala, founder of Eliora Research and Training Institute | Eliora Next Generation Entrepreneurs.
All images supplied by Thabelo Raphala
Where did you study and what are your qualifications?
I am a Chartered Accountant CA(SA), I hold an MBA, with research on “The impact of Enterprise and Supplier Development on SMEs in SA” and a Certified Director with the Institute of Directors South Africa.
My academic and professional background has given me a strong foundation in finance, audit, governance, strategy, enterprise development and impact-led business building. Over the years, I have used that foundation to work across skills development, enterprise and supplier development, research, training, governance and business growth support.
How long have you been involved in the plumbing industry?
My involvement in the plumbing industry spans over 10 years, and I started through my work supporting SMEs – some of whom owned construction and plumbing companies. Over the years, my interest grew beyond just empowering them to grow their businesses, and I started incorporating technical upskilling. Through Eliora Research and Training Institute and Next Generation Entrepreneurs, we work across critical trades and sectors including plumbing, construction, mining, energy, industrial, manufacturing and infrastructure-related occupations.
What drew me closer to plumbing specifically is the recognition that it is one of the most essential trades in society. Plumbing sits at the centre of water, sanitation, health, safety, infrastructure, homes, hospitals, schools, mines, commercial properties and communities. It is a trade that people often only notice when something goes wrong, yet it affects the quality and safety of everyday life.
What made you want to target the plumbing industry specifically?
Thabelo is a Chartered Accountant CA(SA), holds an MBA, and is a Certified Director with the Institute of Directors South Africa.
For me, plumbing is not just a trade. It is a life-critical profession.
There is no infrastructure without a plumber. Almost everything we do as human beings depends, in some way, on water, sanitation and safe installation. We hardly think about plumbers in that way, but their work sits quietly behind some of the most important parts of life.
At the recent Plumbing Indaba, one gentleman shared a story that deeply stayed with me. He spoke about his child being born prematurely and how delicate the process was when he visited the baby. Before doctors could perform any procedure or touch that baby, they had to wash their hands. That simple act depended on the plumbing installation having been done correctly, with quality products, clean water and no contamination. In that moment, the work of a plumber was directly connected to a life-saving medical process.
That story captured why plumbing matters. A poor installation is not just poor workmanship. A wrong geyser installation can burst with hot water in a home with children. Contaminated water can affect health. Poor drainage can compromise hygiene and safety. Plumbing is about trust, professionalism and human wellbeing.
My contribution to the industry is therefore not only to help train technically competent plumbers, but to help develop professional, ethical and entrepreneurial plumbers. At Eliora, we infuse technical training with entrepreneurship because we believe the industry needs people who can do quality work, comply with standards, serve clients professionally and build sustainable businesses.
Can you explain what Eliora does, and how it operates?
Eliora is a research-led, industry-aligned skills and enterprise development organisation. We exist to strengthen Africa’s workforce and entrepreneurial pipeline by building practical pathways into skills, employment, income generation and business growth.
Our work focuses on three connected areas: skills development, enterprise and supplier development and research. Our Skills Development division offers QCTO-accredited occupational training across priority sectors and trades, including plumbing, construction, energy, mining, manufacturing and related technical fields.
Our Enterprise and Supplier Development division supports entrepreneurs and MSMEs in becoming enterprises that can participate in the formal economy meaningfully. We partner with institutions that have empowerment mandates to implement programmes that help MSMEs formalise, be compliant, have financial discipline, be market-ready, scale and become sustainable.
And finally, our research division underpins all of the work we do. We study industry demand and listen to their needs, what skills gaps and economic opportunities are available so that our programmes respond to real problems, and not assumptions. We provide strategy and implementation support to our partners, mainly in and around skills and enterprise development. We also partner with institutions to put together local economic development strategies as well as implement them to meet their sector legislative requirements, B-BBEE or CSI mandate.
Our philosophy is simple: technical skill and entrepreneurial capability must be developed together.
A qualification on its own does not always translate into income, and a business idea on its own does not always translate into a sustainable enterprise. This is why our model intentionally infuses technical training with business, compliance, professionalism and market-readiness skills.
The goal is to ensure that a graduate can succeed in one of two pathways. The first is as a fit-for-purpose professional employee who understands industry standards, safety, productivity, customer expectations and the discipline required in the workplace. The second is as a business founder or contractor who does not start blindly, but understands from the beginning how to price work, manage clients, keep records, comply with regulations, control finances, build systems and run a professional business.
This approach responds to two critical challenges. It helps reduce the number of start-ups that fail because technically skilled people were never taught how to run businesses properly. We also train existing MSME owners in how to do business the right way. It also responds to industry’s concern that the country is not always producing the right skills for the economy. Eliora exists to help close that gap by introducing an educational system that develops graduates who are technically competent, commercially aware, professionally grounded and ready to contribute meaningfully from the first opportunity.
Based on your experience of working with plumbers, what advice do you have for anyone in plumbing?
My advice is to treat plumbing as a serious professional calling. A plumber is, in many ways, like a doctor, lawyer, accountant or auditor. When a plumber gives advice, most clients accept it because they do not have the technical knowledge to question every detail. That places a lot of responsibility on the plumber.
Professionalism is therefore non-negotiable.
The work a plumber does can last for years. You may install a system in a house or commercial property and then be called back to maintain it over the lifespan of that property. Your workmanship, reliability, communication, honesty and business conduct will determine whether that client trusts you again and whether they recommend you to others.
So, for me, two things matter.
First, be technically excellent. Keep learning. Keep adapting. Understand the standards, the products, the regulations and the changes in the industry. Do not treat your qualification as the end of learning.
Second, run yourself like a professional business. Have your compliance in order. Manage your finances properly. Keep records. Communicate with clients. Honour appointments. Quote properly. Invoice properly. Put systems and controls in place. A good plumbing business should not depend only on the owner’s hands; it should be built to grow, employ others and eventually outlive the founder.
What is your philosophy when working?
My philosophy is simple: be obsessed with the people you serve.
Whether they are customers, clients, stakeholders, learners, beneficiaries, employees or communities, you must care deeply enough to understand their real problems and solve them properly. When you are obsessed with the people you serve, excellence becomes a discipline. You do not compromise on quality because you understand that your work affects real lives, real families, real businesses and real communities.
Have you had any bad experiences at work or faced any bias because of your gender? If so, how did you deal with it?
Yes, I have experienced gender bias many times.
I have often worked in male-dominated spaces, and there have been moments where people saw my gender before they saw my competence. In one meeting, after I had given a response on how I believed a matter should be handled, a male committee member said to my face, “You are not just a pretty face I see.” It was intended as a compliment, but it revealed the assumption that I was not expected to contribute at that level.
Those things happen more often than people realise. Sometimes you are treated as though you are in the room because of an equity target, not because of your capability. Sometimes you have to fight harder for what you deserve. Sometimes asking valid questions is received as being difficult. There are situations I have faced that I do not believe would have happened if I were male.
I deal with it by remaining professional, prepared and clear about the value I bring. I have learnt not to internalise other people’s limited expectations of me. I let the work speak, but I also speak when I need to. I remain grounded in my purpose, and I continue to build with excellence because the goal is bigger than the bias.
| Thabelo’s advice to women looking to own a business
Spend time understanding your why. Your purpose must be clear because business will test you. It will test your confidence, your discipline, your patience, your resilience and your belief in what you are building. For me, purpose drives everything I do. It shapes how I serve clients, how I build systems, how I hire, how I work with my team and how I think about the societal problems my business is trying to solve. When your purpose is clear, it reminds you why quality matters, why systems matter, why service matters and why you cannot give up easily. Women in business often have to work harder because of the bias that still exists. You may have to prove yourself in rooms where others are assumed competent before they even speak. That is unfair, but it is real. My advice is to commit to what you have set out to do. Do it properly. Do it excellently. Be relentless about your standards and be deeply committed to the people you serve. Build a business with structure, not just passion. Put systems in place. Understand your numbers. Know your market. Deliver quality. Build a team. Protect your reputation. And never apologise for being ambitious. |
Thabelo Raphala is proving that the future of plumbing is built not only on technical excellence, but also on leadership, innovation and a commitment to creating opportunities for others.
