Christie Liron: Reinvention & Resilience In Business With The Phoenix Mindset

Christie Liron believes, “CEO is just a title, but founder is who I truly am.” This deep sense of purpose has fuelled her two-decade long journey at the helm of Energy at Work, a company she built not for profit, but to make a difference.

Founded after she left the corporate world, Energy at Work was born from a desire to connect people with meaningful careers and to serve clients with integrity, excellence, and empathy.

Christie turned that vision into a thriving enterprise. What began as a recruitment startup, has grown into a full-fledged project-based, BPO, financial services provider, and training organization.

Over the past 20 years, Christie has nurtured a company culture defined by energy, passion and human touch, a place where relationships matter as much as results. Under her leadership, Energy at Work has become a trusted partner to major South African banks and insurance giants, offering agile staffing and end-to-end talent solutions.

Apart from the milestones and accolades, Christie also treasures the people in her long-serving team, her clients turned friends, and the countless lives transformed through opportunity.

Highlight the key areas of expertise you have developed in driving HR functions and technology-led recruitment solutions.

Technology is transforming industries worldwide, especially with AI and automation leading the charge. But for me, this journey began years ago, long before “digital transformation” became a buzzword. Recruitment is not just about finding the perfect candidate; it also ensures that candidates meet all industry requirements through rigorous checks. Traditionally, it has been a manual, time-consuming process.

Energy passion and the human touch is what Energy At Work stands for

I decided to change that by building my own software, Click and Check, under a separate entity. It is an NCR-approved Credit Bureau reseller platform that automates risk management and compliance checks in recruitment.

The system integrates with leading ATS and HR platforms, ensuring data security under POPIA regulations, and gives recruiters a real-time dashboard to track candidates’ onboarding progress. It also enables cost savings and efficiencies specifically in BULK Recruitment & Financial Services.

Introduce us to Energy at Work and its growth over the years.

At Energy at Work Projects (Pty) Ltd, we are not just about talent; we are about transformative customer ser­vice solutions. As a solution-driven BPO powerhouse, we specialise in innovation and unconventional re­source management strategies.

Originally founded as Energy at Work, we began our journey specialising as a recruitment business in 2005. From there, Energy at Work Projects (Pty) Ltd was born in response to a growing global demand for expert Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) services in 2018.

EAWP has since grown into a fully-fledged BPO/project solutions business, meeting a diverse range of project resource needs, for businesses across the globe within the talent industry insights across Banking, Insurance, Retail, and commercial sectors.

My partner, Faheema Shaik and I are executive leaders at Energy at Work Projects and ensure that we drive and represent the ethos of founding company Energy at Work.

We hold invaluable intellectual property combined with innovative methodologies, cutting-edge software tools, and personalised operational models that drive agile talent solutions that deliver unparalleled customer service.

What business challenges do you encounter in your current role? How do you navigate through these roadblocks?

Over the years, we have certainly felt the ripple effects of global economic challenges, especially in banking and financial services. One of the toughest parts of business: realizing that sometimes circumstances are beyond your control. The real test lies in how you recover, how you learn, adapt, and help your team bounce back.

In South Africa, we faced the skills gap challenge. While there is high unemployment, many job seekers lack the specific qualifications needed in financial services. That is why we launched our training academy to upskill individuals and prepare them for real opportunities. We have also had to evolve with changing generations of candidates, each bringing different mindsets and motivations.

How is the HR and recruitment landscape evolving in South Africa and globally?

South Africa has become one of the world’s top outsourcing destinations. Our advantage lies in our English fluency, cultural compatibility, strong work ethic, and cost-effectiveness, along with our favorable time zones for UK and US operations. We are also a highly regulated market, which aligns well with global standards.

At the same time, technology and AI are transforming our industry. While many worry about automation replacing people, our experience has shown the opposite: new technology often creates greater demand for skilled talent to manage transitions and support customers.

This shift has opened doors for flexible staffing, project-based recruitment, and a stronger emphasis on pipeline hiring, ensuring we are always ready with the right talent when opportunities arise.

Looking back, which professional milestones are you most proud of? What is your ‘success mantra’?

Reflecting on our 20-year journey feels surreal; it truly seems like yesterday we started. Reaching this milestone in such a competitive industry is something I am deeply proud of. What kept us going is our ability to stay relevant, constantly innovate, and create solutions that add real value.

Our biggest strength, though, is our people. Around 60 percent of our team has been with us long-standing tenure which says so much about our culture. We are not just a company; we are a family.

My guiding principles have always been simple: do it right the first time, aim for excellence, and never lose the human touch. We live by the spirit of the Phoenix to rise, evolve, and come back stronger after every challenge. That resilience and passion are what have carried us through two remarkable decades.

Christie Liron, CEO & Director, Energy At Work

Christie Liron is the CEO and Director of Energy at Work, a South Africa–based human capital and business process outsourcing (BPO) firm that has been shaping the talent landscape for over two decades. With more than 20 years of leadership experience, Christie has built Energy at Work into a people-centered, purpose-driven organization known for its innovation, resilience, and commitment to excellence. Under her guidance, the company has evolved beyond traditional recruitment, pioneering customised solutions in the Outsourced Space.