John Buchan once said, "The task of leadership is not to put greatness into people, but to elicit it, for the greatness is there already." These are words to which Abey Mokgwatsane, CEO of Ogilvy & Mather South Africa, subscribes.

A graduate of the AAA School of Advertising, Mokgwatsane set off to change and influence the marketing world.

Abey began his journey as a marketing trainee at the VWV Group (www.vwv.com), the global brand experience agency which specialises in creating experiences that change perceptions and inspire action. Founded in 1981, VWV is a hub of specialist business units focusing on video and film production, event management, Internet and multimedia applications, and corporate and direct theatre.

He went on to join South African Breweries (SAB) as brand manager for the epic Castle Loud Programme, a young adult trans-media property for Castle Lager that went on to win the 2002 super budget Raptor Award for sponsorship excellence.

It wasn't long until he was appointed senior brand manager of Miller Genuine Draft and tasked with launching the brand into the South African market in June 2003. He also received three Managing Directors Award for marketing excellence at SAB.

Fast-forward five years later to 2005: Abey found himself back where he started, but this time as a majority stakeholder (46%) in the VWV Group business with partners Wanda Shuenyane and Jameson Hlongwane. Abey served as group marketing and sales director until December 2005, when he was appointed group CEO.

With Abey at the helm, VWV's bottom-line performance increased 10-fold in five years and also successfully executed the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The group is best known for its creative track record both here and abroad. It is also the most-awarded experiential agency in Loeries' history.

It comes as no surprise that the 34-year-old business leader was nominated as one of the Mail & Guardian 200 Young South Africans, in the Business and Law category, in 2011. Mokgwatsane is also the founder of Young Business for South Africa, the Think Tank Initiative and the Experiential Industry Association of South Africa.

In January 2012, Abey was appointed CEO of Ogilvy South Africa (www.ogilvy.co.za; @OgilvySA), the country's largest communications services group.

Abey is also an acknowledged speaker on experiential marketing and challenger brand thinking.

Contact Abey on tel +27 (0)11 709 6600 or email , and follow @Abeyphonogenic on Twitter.