THINK South Africa Executive Committee Profiles

Trevor is skilled and passionate hands-on Senior Financial Executive with extensive experience in all areas of finance and administration in diverse industries including non-profit Organisations, manufacturing, financial services, and advisory.

A visionary change agent who builds and leads motivated teams. Has proven ability to improve operations, positively impact business growth and maximize profits through achievements in finance management, cost reduction, internal controls, and productivity /efficiency improvements. Trevor is a reliable and strong business strategic partner and he is motivated in making a difference in the world.

Trevor has a degree in Accounting from Nelson Mandela University and currently studying his MBA with Business school Netherlands. He is a registered or certified Professional Accountant.

Trevor has been with THINK since 2018 and has risen in ranks due to his formidable strategic mindset and ability, Trevor is a fearless leader who will get his hands dirty ensuring the success of his team and the organisation as a whole.

Tasha has 22 years of experience in the NGO space in South Africa. She has over 17 years experience working with donors and stakeholders such as PEPFAR, the National Department of Health, Global Fund, Centre for Disease Control (CDC), USAID and Dutch. She has managed numerous projects and started up at least three, five-year projects and managed it through to close out. In her various roles she has developed strategic plans based on project outcomes and developed and managed the annual departmental implementation plans aligned to the strategy. A key function in her management positions was the recruitment and supervision of staff. Her experience in project management also included monitoring of performance against projected targets and outcomes.

Suzanne Staples, MBChB, is a devoted medical doctor and currently full time investigator and Principal Investigator at THINK. She became heavily exposed to the reality of the TB and HIV epidemics from working in hospitals in various parts of the country, eventually ending up in Durban at the Medical Department of McCord Mission Hospital. There she became involved in clinical research with KwaZulu-Natal Research Institute for Tuberculosis and HIV (K-RITH) and from 2013 with THINK.

Dr Suzanne Staples is a medical doctor and Principal Investigator at THINK: TB and HIV Investigative Network. After completing her Medical degree at the University of the Free State in 2008, she was exposed to the persistent large-scale impact of Tuberculosis (TB) and HIV on her patients through her clinical work. This made Dr Staples decide to dedicate her medical career to the improvement of care for these patients. She was able to fulfill this passion by getting involved in TB research early on. She started doing clinical research in 2012 and quickly worked herself up in the field to Principal Investigator, doing global clinical TB trials, at THINK.

Wanting to understand the communities she works in better and the impact of her research, she pursued a Masters’ degree to explore this further. She completed an MPhil. In Transdisciplinary Health and Development studies from Stellenbosch University in 2017.

In 2017, Dr Staples was selected as a candidate for a 1-year EDCTP-WHO fellowship, funded by the European union, to strengthen the research capabilities in Africa, by placing African scientists at European institutes. She has completed the fellowship and is busy with her reintegration projects, one which is to start up an African Research Network.

Human beings have the capacity to impact and improve the lives of those around them. It is a blessing to be able to make a difference, whether it is in the lives of our colleagues or the patients and communities we serve. One of my responsibilities at THINK is the training portfolio which provides me with the opportunity to enhance others’ understanding of TB and HIV. I truly enjoy sharing my knowledge and opening the door to understanding. It is a role that I find fulfilling and feel blessed to combine what I love with what I do. For it is through knowledge that we empower and through empowerment, that we make a difference.

Masingita Lambane is a passionate strategic facilitator of effective and efficient collaborations who works well with the public, private and civil society sectors. He has a combined 23 years of experience working in various sectors, and he has also worked for new start-ups and proved to be a disruptor driving innovations and conversions. Masingita is committed to improving communities where project activities are implemented.

He contributed towards initiating a successful integration of a Water and HIV mainstreaming project, influencing policy shift in Eastern Cape through facilitating the signing of an MOU with the Eastern Cape House of Traditional Leaders, and designing the first ever VMMC register currently used in most public health facilities in South. He delivered cutting-edge stakeholder and community engagement strategies and innovative campaigns that increased product demand, accelerated growth, and maximised participation. Masingita graduated from the University of Limpopo and furthered his studies through graduate schools at the Universities of Utrecht, Cape Town, and Stellenbosch. 

As Head of Strategic Partnerships, Masingita oversees the identification and development of potential strategic partners.  He leads the planning, development, and design of the Strategic Partnership Unit within THINK. He aims to make THINK a recognizable player in the Non-Profit sector nationally, regionally, and towards an international presence.

Kirsty has worked in Banking for 31 years, the latter 18 as a Business Relationship Manager for Small Businesses.  She started at THINK in 2018, working on the first Health Systems Support project that THINK undertook. 

Since then she has occupied various roles which have strengthened her knowledge of working within a Commercial NPO, becoming more and more aware of how important work undertaken by nonprofit organisations such as THINK really is.  

Kirsty never thought that she would be able to amalgamate her love for figures and Excel in a meaningful and community-driven way, so after a long career, she feels that she has finally come home.