Mabena is an entrepreneurial business executive with vast experience in the marketing and property management sectors. As the CEO of Thebe Services, Mabena is responsible for managing a portfolio that contains 16 subsidiary and associate Thebe companies that are service-centred, offering services ranging from financial to tourism services, as well as media, energy (petroleum services), and property management.
Mabena has started and run a number of businesses, some of which are still operational. He has a degree in industrial psychology and economics from Rhodes University. He also holds a diploma in project management from Damelin and a certificate program in accounting and finance from Wits Business School.
Mabena has held various senior positions in companies such as Unilever, J Walter Thompson, Ucingo Marketing, and Kagiso Exhibitions and Events. Before joining Thebe in 2011, he was the CEO of Kagiso Property Holding which was behind prime developments such as Willowbridge Lifestyle Centre in Cape Town; the Vaal Shopping Mall in Vanderbijlpark; the South African Revenue Service Assessment & Enforcement Facility in Alberton; and the head of JSE-listed company, Tiger Brands, in Johannesburg.