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Dear colleagues, alumni and friends The past couple of months have presented intense challenges to university administrators, leaders and students. At no time has it been more important to stand united in our efforts to find long-term solutions for the national issue of student fees. Amidst the turmoil, there have been moments for celebration at WBS. We are delighted to welcome to WBS two visiting adjunct professors, both high profile personalities. Peter Hain, the Right Honourable Lord Hain of Neath, joined us as of 1st June 2016. Lord Hain has had a fascinating and impressive career as a Labour MP in the UK, as an author of 21 books and as an anti-apartheid activist. He brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience in the field of leadership and negotiation, and a passion for this country in which he grew up. It is an honour to have someone of Lord Hain’s stature at the School and we welcome him wholeheartedly.
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WBS strives to continually grow in our understanding of our national and international context – specifically what it means to do business on the continent of Africa in ways which are sustainable and forward-thinking. We are very pleased, therefore, to announce the appointment, as of 1st November 2016, of Mr Zunaid Bulbulia as visiting professor at WBS. Mr Bulbulia’s career with MTN culminated in his appointment as Group Chief Operating Officer, and he has amassed vast experience of doing business in Africa. For his part, Mr Bulbilia is thrilled to back at his alma mater, and is poised to contribute to WBS's vision of making a tangible contribution this country and continent.
There is much more to celebrate with regards to our staff making a difference in their individual spheres of interest (see below).
Finally, in September we were named the ‘comeback kid’ in the Financial Mail, with the latest rankings indicating that employers still consider WBS as having the best overall reputation among South African business schools. We are indeed proud of how far we have come in the last three years – but it is ‘onwards and upwards’! The vision is to gain Triple Crown accreditation and be ranked the number one business school in South Africa.
Thank you to each one of you who have played a role in our growth trajectory.
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Best regards, Steve Bluen
Director and Head of School
Wits Business School
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| | Never Too Soon to Start – Centre for Entrepreneurship Develops New School Curriculum WBS’s Centre for Entrepreneurship (CfE) has been involved in developing a new Grade 9 curriculum to teach young people what it means to be an entrepreneur - the first of its kind to be developed locally for Gauteng schools. The project forms part of the Centre’s advocacy function for optimising entrepreneurial development in South Africa. Click here to read more
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Once upon a lecture theatre… Students learn the ancient art of story telling WBS boasts a number of high-profile visiting and part-time lecturers who bring to the classroom a breath of fresh air and a new perspective. Peter Christie, better known in his professional life as ‘Big Chief Talking Bull’, is one of them – known to many students, past and current, for his enduring MBA elective ‘Every Leader a Storyteller’. Click here to read more
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WBS Academic turns Politician Johannesburg’s new finance MMC is also a familiar face around WBS campus. Dr Rabelani Dagada has been teaching information systems management at the School for about a decade. Click here to read more
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WBS Goes West… to Ghana WBS recently made its mark in Ghana at the inaugural African Review of Economics and Finance (AREF) conference, organised by our own Prof Paul Alagidede. The conference, held in Kumasi, Ghana from 11-12 August, was a resounding success. Click here to read more
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| | From Parys to Paris – PDM Alumnus hits the International Fashion World Keneilwe Pule, PDM alumnus 2016, is unexpectedly living her dream in the fashion capital of the world. Keneilwe hails from Parys in the northern Free State, and completed her BSc in Genetics at the University of the Free State, majoring in Cytogenetics, Biochemistry and Microbiology. But it was the fashion and luxury consumer goods industry that lured her away from the lab. Click here to read more
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I’ve got my MBA – Now what Abri Vosloo, a business and digital strategist, remembers being warned about the ‘post-MBA blues’, and has decided to help fill the post-study vacuum experienced by so many MBA graduates. Click here to read more
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| | Consultants in the Making: WBS Team comes out tops in Case Competition Our student-run WBS Consulting Club recently took part in a case competition sponsored by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) - with outstanding results. Click here to read more
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2016 a Bumper year for WBS PHD Grads! Professor Paul Alagidede has much to smile about. No fewer than four of his doctoral candidates will have graduated by the end of 2016, all of them in record time. Click here to read more
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MBA Student Makes Kenyan 'Top 40' WBS MBA (part-time) student, Fiona Kigen, was delighted to find herself no.30 on the list.
Currently Vice-President of Marketing in the Corporate and Investment Banking division of Barclays Africa Group Limited,
Fiona joined the company as a marketing executive at the age of 22. Click here to read more
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Executive education course dates for 2016
Applications are still open for our 2017 academic programmes!
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Wednesday, 23 November, 2016
Hosted by: Jonathan Michie, Professor of Innovation and Knowledge Exchange, Oxford University
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Wednesday, 30 November, 2016
Brought to you by: Nasedi Media & Communications in Partnership with Wits Business School and Absa Enterprise Development.
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Public Lecture: Europe: Populism, Refugees and the British Referendum
Anti-Europe sentiment has been spreading across the EU nations. The last European Parliament elections in 2014 revealed huge continent-wide discontent. Britain expressed this sentiment dramatically in its Brexit referendum.
Are the achievements of 60 years of European democracy fatally threatened? Can Europe, a rich but ageing continent, rise to the challenge of coping with an unprecedented refugee crisis? On 22 September, WBS was proud to host Peter Hain, the Right Honourable Lord Hain of Neath, author, labour politician and activist, for a riveting lecture on Europe’s challenges as it enters a new political era. Click here to be taken to the video
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Book Launch: Why is Collective Bargaining failing in South Africa? A reflection on how to restore social dialogue in South Africa The 27th September saw the launch of WBS’s Dr Geoff Heald’s timely new book. According to Dr Heald, senior lecturer in negotiation, collective bargaining is failing in South Africa because the parties to the process have failed to seek ways of achieving inclusive social development and balancing the requirements of a competitive economy, the imperative for employment creation and the achievement of an ecologically sustainable environment. The book is published by Knowledge Resources and sells for R329.00. Click here to be taken to the video
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Panel Discussion: Sugar Tax: Yay or Nay? On 19 September, WBS hosted a ‘bitter-sweet’ discussion on the big sugar debate – the government’s proposed 20% tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. The lively discussion, chaired by Business Day’s Hillary Joffe, included speakers Sibongile Chiumya - Coca-Cola Southern Africa; Prof Karen Hofman - Wits University; Lullu Krugel – KPMG; Mpho Legote - Treasury; Dr Neva Makgetla - TIPS and Brett Naidoo – SoftBev. Click here to be taken to the video
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MasterClass: The Resilient Bank: Human touch and digitized proposition – blending the best of both worlds
The expectations of banking customers are becoming increasingly complex. Not only do they expect their bank to help them achieve their financial goals and protect their assets, but they also want convenience, reliability, and flexibility to meet their changing needs. To meet these and other expectations, retail banks must become “bionic”: they must provide both digital functionality and thoughtful human interaction.
WBS hosted a masterclass on 15th September, which explored a new era of “bionic” banking, with Ian Walsh, Senior Partner with the Boston Consulting Group’s banking group in London.
Click here to be taken to the video
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Panel Discussion: Ethical Leadership – In pursuit of ethical leaders On 18 October, WBS hosted a panel discussion facilitated by Cynthia Schoeman of Ethics Monitoring & Managing Service. Other panellists included Dr Yondela Ndema (Sasol), Adriaan Groenewald (Leadership Platform) and Ansie Ramalho (Institute of Directors).
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Public Lecture: Industrialisation in South Africa, China and Africa – from mere ‘suppliership’ to collaborative, value-driven partnership On 26 October, Professor Douglas Boateng gave a talk to a packed lecture hall on the long-term implications of China’s presence on the continent of Africa. He considered how best to create ‘win-win’ collaborative partnerships in the context of long-term socio-economic development and industrialisation.
Click here to be taken to the video
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MBA Visit to Barclays Africa
On 27 October a group of MBA students enjoyed a highly stimulating morning at Barclays Africa in the Joburg CBD. Part of the MBA Local Study Tour, the company visit included a talk and Q & A session with Peter Matlare, Deputy CEO Barclays Africa Group and Audrey Mothupi, CE of the SystemicLogic Group, a global financial innovation and technology disruptor. Both gave frank and insightful talks on the realities of doing business in Africa – the highs and lows, and the necessity to reinvent oneself in the face of complex challenges. The morning finished with a presentation by Geoff Gable, Head of Research and Chief Economist at Barclays on the economic outlook of Africa. After the visit to Barclays the group enjoyed a special ‘Africa-French’ fusion lunch, followed by a tour of Johannesburg with a focus on socio-economic planning. The Local Study tour included visits to Durban, Cape Town and Botswana.
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Are you a student, staff member or alumni? Do you have a story to tell or an event to feature? Do you have feedback on the newsletter? Please contact WBS Communications Manager, Jane Balnaves on jane.balnaves@wits.ac.za
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