Meet the women redefining what leadership looks like in South Africa’s solar industry
South Africa’s renewable energy sector is still dominated by men in technical and engineering roles, but the industry cannot function without the women running legal, compliance, customer experience, and countless other functions behind the scenes. This Women’s Month, GoSolr is putting a spotlight on some of the women helping the company deliver reliable, affordable solar power to South African homes.
Dharmisha Lala-Harmse: The lawyer proving law and solar go hand in hand
As Legal Counsel at GoSolr, Dharmisha Lala-Harmse’s days span contracts, compliance, customer disputes, litigation and legal risk management, working across almost every team in the business. She joined in March 2025, drawn to renewable energy because it combines innovation with real social impact. “Reliable energy is a daily concern for many South Africans,” she says, “and it is meaningful to use my legal experience in a business that is helping address that challenge.”
Working across both the legal and renewable energy sectors, two industries that remain male-dominated, has taught her the importance of trusting her own expertise and using her voice with confidence. She describes learning to stand firmly in that expertise, particularly in environments where women may still have to work harder to be heard, as one of the biggest challenges of her career. “You do not need to change who you are to lead or make an impact,” she says.
She is proudest of building a career where she can use the law to solve real problems, and at GoSolr, of helping develop legal and compliance processes that protect the business while promoting fairness and accountability. Her advice to any woman considering the industry is simple: “Do not wait until you feel completely ready. Be curious, learn the industry and trust that your perspective has value.” Looking ahead, she hopes to see more women in technical, legal and senior decision-making roles, with real influence over the direction of the industry. “Representation matters,” she says, “however, women must also be supported, heard and trusted to lead.”
Tanya Jooste: A compliance career that grew into a fascination with solar technology
Tanya Jooste, Head of Customer Experience and Compliance at GoSolr, spends her days making sure customers are happy, processes work, and the business stays on the right side of the rules. When she joined as a Compliance Manager, solar was completely unfamiliar territory. What began as an attempt to understand how compliance fit into a fast-moving industry turned into a genuine fascination with the technology itself, from panels and batteries to inverters and system performance. “I never imagined I’d be learning about wiring standards, DB boards, inverters, batteries, and all the technical things that come with solar,” she says. “There were moments where I felt completely out of my depth.”
Her biggest career challenge has been a different kind of growth: learning when not to step in. As someone who instinctively wants to fix what she sees needs improving, she had to learn that real leadership sometimes means stepping back, trusting her team, and giving people room to own their work and grow into it. She traces much of her resilience back to her father, who worked as a car guard at auctions while studying accounting. “Watching that level of determination taught me that success isn’t about having the easiest path,” she says. “It’s about showing up, doing the work, and refusing to quit when things get hard.”
Having watched her parents sacrifice to build a better future for their children, she sees GoSolr’s mission of affordable, reliable energy as more than electricity: it’s peace of mind and the ability for families to plan for tomorrow. Her advice for women considering the industry: “You don’t need to know everything on day one. Ask questions, stay curious and don’t be afraid to get stuck in.” Her hope is that women in renewable energy stop being the exception and simply become part of the norm, recognised for the value they bring.
Natalie Thom: Turning ambiguity into structure
Natalie Thom leads strategic, business-critical initiatives at GoSolr, building alignment across teams and turning ambiguous problems into clear plans with defined ownership and metrics. Her path into renewable energy started outside the company. During six years at Xfacta, GoSolr was one of her clients, giving her a close view of the business as it grew, and she installed a solar system at her own home in early 2023, becoming a customer before she became an employee. “What attracted me was the combination of purpose and innovation,” she says. “GoSolr was solving a genuine problem for South Africans while building a business that challenged traditional ways of thinking about energy access.”
She joined GoSolr just under three years ago as a Special Projects Lead and has since moved into an executive role, helping build accountability and clarity within the development function. As a woman in the industry, she says there are moments of playing catch-up. “Most women aren’t raised understanding DB boards, AC/DC, or how solar systems work, so I’ve had to learn a lot along the way,” she says. “But that’s been one of the most rewarding parts of the journey.” Often the only woman in the room, she has come to see that as a chance to bring a different perspective rather than a disadvantage.
Her biggest career challenge was less technical and more personal: finding work she genuinely enjoyed, not just work she was good at, and learning to balance guidance with the room to let people grow. She is proudest simply of still being here nearly three years on, having made an impact at GoSolr while raising young children and keeping a close-knit family life running. Her advice to women weighing a career in renewable energy: “Don’t let the fact that it’s a traditionally male-dominated industry put you off. The sector needs diverse perspectives, and women are playing an increasingly important role in its growth and success.”
Building an industry that reflects everyone it serves
Dharmisha, Tanya and Natalie’s stories show that solar careers do not follow one fixed path. A legal background, a compliance role, a career built on strategy and operations: all of it can lead to meaningful work in an industry that is still finding its shape. GoSolr’s commitment to bringing reliable, affordable solar power to South African homes depends on this range of skills and perspectives, and as more women step into leadership across the sector, the industry stands to become stronger and more representative of the country it serves.