Don’t be mistaken by her humble nature and quiet persona. Ballito Lifestyle Centre Operations Manager, Joelene Francis, is an ambitious and hardworking woman who is an integral member of the management team and key to the centre’s success. Working with more than 50 directly employed staff and over 150 outsourced employees, service providers and consultants, Joelene cites relationships, mutual respect and trust as imperative.

Reliable and committed, with a remarkable work ethic, Ballito Lifestyle Centre Operations Manager Joelene Francis is a formidable woman and an integral member of the Centre Management team.
Starting as an Operations Admin Assistant 14 years ago, Joelene learned the ins and outs of the shopping centre, gaining invaluable experience and skills, as well as a strong foundational knowledge of the department she has been heading up for the past three years.

Born and raised on the North Coast, Joelene lives in Shakaskraal, where she spent most of her childhood and remains deeply entrenched in the community. She has a twin brother, named Joel, with whom she is great friends, and a sister, Stephanie, who works with her at Lifestyle Centre.
After school, Joelene completed a diploma in Cost and Management Accounting at Durban University of Technology. She worked several ‘odd jobs’ while she was growing up and studying, including being a packer at a grocery store and a short stint in an art gallery.

“My siblings and I all have a strong work ethic, which was instilled in us by our parents,” she says.
Joelene’s first professional job was at Coastal Accounting, where she worked for three years before joining the Ballito Lifestyle Centre. “My sister, Stephanie Sheriff, who has worked for Ballito Lifestyle Centre for 20 years, needed assistance with a general operations administrative position that was available in the operations department. It was pretty much just doing general filing and paperwork, but it was where I started learning about the centre and the business as a whole, at a basic level.”

It was this start, along with the thorough training she received from her superiors, that gave Joelene the grounding and knowledge she needed to understand the inner workings of the shopping centre.

“Steph took me under her wing and I learned the ropes from the bottom up, spending time in every department and with the Centre’s outsourced service providers, getting a basic understanding of the operational side of the business, and developing relationships with the staff and management. It was also a case of watching and learning, taking notes from the long–serving management team, and sitting in on meetings, listening to experienced consultants and how everyone operated and carried themselves that contributed to a high standard of service levels.
“I’m so grateful that I was given this kind of training and was able to spend time learning about each component, working with different teams, learning their processes, and understanding each person’s role in the team.”

Three years ago, Joelene was appointed Operations Manager, and the day-to-day operations of the centre now fall under her watch, including working with security, waste management, cleaning and pest control. These include both in-house and outsourced service providers.  
A typical day starts with Joelene waking up at 4.30am to get ready and beat the traffic, then touching base with all the teams, including the night shift, and assessing and prioritising the tasks for that day. “One of our main aspects is that we are an open-air centre, and the weather plays a crucial role in our day-to-day operations. Priority must be given to all the urgent works first, depending on the weather, and then we operate within a structured framework of works involving pre-planned schedules and checklists, etc.”

With more than 50 directly employed staff and over 150 outsourced employees, service providers, consultants (and more than 80 tenants), Joelene believes retaining good relationships and mutual respect and trust is imperative.
“In a way, my job is made easy and fun because I work with such a talented and committed group of people. We rely on each other’s skills and trust that everyone is going to do what they need to, and we are there for each other.”

Key to the centre’s success, Joelene believes, has been the clear vision from the owner, Bruce Rencken, for the centre’s future, in that the centre is considered as an extension of residents’ lives – not just to shop and dine, but also a great meeting place. The relationship with and cooperation from the tenants have been a key component to this. “We have an exceptional mix of tenants who have partnered with the centre to deliver the best shopping experience. It’s like being part of a big family. It’s been wonderful for me to be a part of the centre’s growth into what it is today.”
Being available to her teams 24/7 in case of emergencies and for check-ins means Joelene carefully juggles her work-life balance. When she’s not at work, she enjoys spending time with her long-term partner, Hari, and their dog and two rescue cats. She loves walking on the beach and enjoys watching sport on TV. “I have two sporty, young nephews, Aiden (11) and Aryn (9), who keep me very busy and on my toes, and, at the moment, we are becoming expert Lego builders!”

Asked what her advice would be to young women with big career goals, Joelene says: “Don’t limit yourself. Do your best work in every single thing you do. It may sound a bit open and ambiguous, but that is all you need to do to reach your goals. We live in an age where gender shouldn’t be a limiting factor, so don’t limit yourself!”