VML South Africa has bolstered its creative leadership team with two internal promotions. Fumani Khumalo and Zinhle Mbatha are stepping into creative leadership roles after being promoted to Creative Director positions. Khumalo was previously Art Director, while Mbatha held the position of Copywriter.
Reflecting on his career and the respected creative leaders he’s learnt from along the way, Khumalo said, ‘Stepping into this new role is both rewarding and humbling. I am reminded of the standard that was set for me. In this new role, I am excited by the opportunity to pay it forward, to mentor, guide and grow talent in the same way I was supported.’
Mbatha describes the experience of following in his mentors’ footsteps as ‘surreal’, adding that, ‘so much of what we know and what still echoes in our heads is from them. I hope to leave the same impact and love for creativity in those I get the chance to work with.’
Nhlanhla Ngcobo, Executive Creative Director at VML South Africa, said, ‘This has been a long time coming! Mbatha and Khumalo’s work has consistently demonstrated not only craft, but clarity of thought, leadership instinct, and the unusual ability to turn ambiguity into something sharp, memorable, and effective.’
‘I am personally looking forward to how they will inspire the teams they’ll lead to wave multi-coloured middle fingers to the conventional and pedestrian way of doing things. And how they’ll get them to colour outside the lines as they, themselves, have for the longest time on our most prolific and well awarded clients. Teams rally around their thinking because it’s both grounded and ambitious in all the right ways.’
‘Creative leadership today requires emotional intelligence, relationships, decisiveness, and the acumen to creatively solve business problems. Those qualities show up consistently with this dynamic duo. This is earned, overdue, and exactly the kind of leadership we should be investing in. I’m so proud.’
Khumalo and Mbatha take up their new roles at a time when the creative industry is in need of leadership that’s both level-headed and forward-thinking. Here, they reflect on the industry’s challenges and opportunities, and the strengths they bring to their new positions.
What are the unique challenges creative directors face in 2026?
FK: With every new wave of technological advancement comes the risk of losing the fundamentals of what truly shapes great work. The basics that are honed through repetition, craft and doing the work, not just generating an outcome.
As someone who’s had the opportunity to do those basics and equally embraces technological advancements, my challenge is to ensure that, even in this new fast-paced, output-driven world we live in, I still create a space for the fundamentals so that work isn’t just efficient but also has depth, meaning, and is well-crafted.
ZM: There is a real balancing act between embracing what’s new and still honouring the tried-and-tested creative process.
The runway is much shorter now for young creatives; tight deadlines and automation mean there’s less work to get your reps in. The challenge is helping them hone their taste. It’s the only thing that will set them and the work apart.
Where do the biggest creative opportunities lie in South Africa right now?
FK: The biggest opportunity in South Africa is to turn our constraints into creative opportunities. We’re a mobile-first market with diverse, highly engaged audiences, which creates the perfect conditions for ideas that are born in culture, not just broadcast into it.
What excites me is the ability to approach ideas as platforms rather than traditional campaign thinking. Platforms that live natively in social, in creator ecosystems, in real-world spaces and move fluidly between them.
ZM: We’re still figuring out who we are as a nation and that tension is actually a creative goldmine, especially for storytelling. On top of that, we have problems that genuinely don’t exist anywhere else in the world.
What keeps me obsessed is this space where you can blend technology, existing solutions, and who South Africans actually are. What comes out the other side is something entirely new that’s ours to own.
What excites you most about your new role?
FK: The shift from focusing on my own output to shaping the creative direction of a team. As an Art Director, I loved being hands-on and crafting the work, but this role allows me to have a wider impact guiding ideas from a higher level, mentoring talent and helping elevate the overall standard of the work.
ZM: It’s the shift to owning the full vision; not just a great execution, but what a brand stands for creatively and how every piece of work ladders up to that. Bringing different minds and strengths together to bring that vision to life excites me more than I ever thought it would.
VML SOUTH AFRICA
https://www.vml.com/south-africa
