Mark Lamberti
Since 1st March 2014 Mark Lamberti (63) has been the Chief Executive Officer of Imperial Holdings Limited, a diversified industrial services and retail group, active in logistics; vehicle distribution, retail, rental and parts; and financial services in sub Saharan Africa, Europe, the United States of America and South America. With revenues of R110b ($11b) and profits of R4b ($400) the Group employs over 58 000 people and ranks among the top 40 companies on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).
From 1st June 2008 until 15th January 2014 Lamberti was the Chief Executive Officer and a major shareholder of Transaction Capital Limited, a non-deposit taking financial services group active in specialised lending, credit services and payment services. Following various turnaround initiatives, the group was listed on the JSE on 7th June 2012 and reported revenue and headline earnings of R4.6b and R545m respectively in the year to September 2013, bringing the growth of assets, income and headline earnings each to 300% during Lamberti’s tenure. He served as non-executive Chairman until the 4th March 20014 when he resigned to devote his attention to Imperial Holdings Limited.
For the same reason on the 10th April, Lamberti resigned as non-executive Chairman of the Board of Massmart Holdings Limited, a position he assumed on the 1st July 2007 after serving for almost 19 years as founder, architect, Chief Executive and the largest private shareholder of this R72b sales per annum, 37 000 employee wholesale and retail group, which was listed on the JSE on the 4th July 2000. Massmart is Africa’s second largest retailer and wholesaler of consumer goods with a 12 country 357 store, sub Saharan footprint of 1.48 million square meters. In June 2011, Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, acquired a 51% controlling interest in Massmart at an enterprise value of R34b and invited Lamberti to retain his position as non-executive Chairman.
To complement his commercial interests, Lamberti serves as an executive committee member and director of Business Leadership South Africa, an organisation representing the interests of South Africa’s 80 largest corporations. In addition, his interest in education has led to his involvement as a benefactor, director, advisor or lecturer to a number of educational institutions including the Wits Business School where he is an Honorary Adjunct Professor of Business Administration. He is currently a Trustee and Executive Committee member of the National Education Collaborative Trust, which is a government, business, labour and civil society initiative in support of South Africa’s National Development Plan and Education Sector Plan.
Mark holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree, a Masters degree in Business Administration and is an alumnus of the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration where he completed the Presidents Programme in Leadership.
Lamberti’s achievements have been widely acknowledged throughout his career, most notably in 2001 as the winner of the Ernst & Young South Africa’s Best Entrepreneur Award. In 2004 he was named the Italian-South African Businessman of the Year by the Italian South African Chamber of Commerce. In 2012 he received the prestigious Wits Business School Management Excellence Award for demonstrating ethical leadership, managerial excellence and societal relevance throughout a distinguished career. In 2013 he was designated a Chartered Director, CD(SA), by the Institute of Directors on the basis of his public record and established status as a director.
