Zaitoon Davids: Adding her sparkle to Confex and the CTICC

Zaitoon started temping with the CTICC in the ICT and Conference & Exhibitions (Confex) departments between September 2017 and September 2019. She was made permanent in October 2019. Before she joined the CTICC, she worked for a network cabling and electrical infrastructure company as the office administrator.

A friend in the events industry recommended the CTICC because of its reputation for excellence and so she applied and landed her first permanent post as the Confex Administrator, supporting the Confex Manager and Coordinators. In addition to that role, she managed the Event Permit Process with the City of Cape Town Permit Office.

Since that time, she has progressed from her initial appointment in Confex through an Event Administrator role to her current role as Event Executive, which she has held since the beginning of 2025. This role involves planning, coordinating and executing events from start to finish: no small task.

During her time at the CTICC, she has benefited from a variety of training that has supported her professional development. This has included customer service excellence training, health and safety compliance, event management systems training, soft skills development, as well as sustainability and waste management awareness.

She has also benefited from the guidance of experienced mentors and managers who have guided her through challenges, encouraged her development and supported her goals throughout her time with the CTICC. She is now experienced enough to mentor young staff members herself, including Junior Joel (currently Events Logistics Administrator) and Ntombikayise Mthimkhulu (Events Services Assistant).

The organisation has grown and changed significantly since she joined the CTICC, with the CTICC 2 building opening and the culture, she believes, tremendously improved by people adopting the organisation’s values more consistently. She is also excited about the community activations the CTICC has created – in particular, the Call to Care drive, which started in 2023, as well the Mandela Day activations July 2025.

In terms of changing the game in the events sector, she absolutely believes that the CTICC team always goes above and beyond to satisfy the clients’ needs. And she believes that the committee who nominated and appointed her Star Performer recognised that same effort and commitment in her.

What next? She would like to gain more skills and experience in her current field and to contribute to impactful projects or innovations in the sector – for herself and the CTICC, personally and professionally.