Prof Kobus Jonker, Director of TUT's Business School.
“Following the adoption of a new vision for the Business School, a number of new initiatives aimed at increasing the role it could play in maximizing the impact of Business, Governmental and Societal Leadership in the City of Tshwane as well as the province have been identified,” says Prof Kobus Jonker, who has taken over the reigns as Director of TUT’s Business School in January 2019.
The first of these initiatives is the Tshwane Leadership Summit, Leadership for a Better Society, in partnership with the Innovation Hub that will be hosted on 23 October 2019. The Summit will convene respected and well-known thought leaders, key opinion builders and captains of industry at an executive event.
“The summit will highlight the importance, and vital role of leadership, and will explore the dynamic strands of leadership required for sustainable business growth and development within the Tshwane area and beyond. Our second initiative is the introduction of the International Certificate to address the need for Entrepreneurship and Business Development with Social Impact,” Prof Jonker adds.
Prof Jonker explains that, although the Business School has been offering an excellent accredited MBA Programme for many years, it now plans to spread its wings and use its influence to become a notable facilitator of change in the City of Tshwane. “The focus of this change will be on facilitating the systemic transformative economic and social impact of business leadership, as the ultimate goal. The aim is to achieve this goal through the formation of strategic partnerships that will result in collaborative projects with internal and external role players, while also upholding the values of shared responsibility, growth and leadership in service to society.”
He adds that the Business School has already embarked on important discussions with prominent government and business stakeholders in the city, resulting in signed memoranda of agreement linked to specific projects. “We believe that Business School‘s should not focus exclusively on serving the corporate sector, but should also play a meaningful role in the development of entrepreneurs, more specifically township entrepreneurs.”
In addition, the Business School will soon start to offer Master Classes to targeted sectors in the city. The very important automotive sector was identified as one of the first and negotiations with prominent players in the Automotive Industry is at an advanced stage.
The School is also affecting changes to its current MBA Programme to prepare it for international accreditation through the UK-based Association of MBAs. Several local schools have already done so.
"Securing this international accreditation, will elevate us to share the status of the best schools in SA. It is the minimum we should strive for," Prof Jonker adds.
"A Post Graduate Diploma in Management has recently also been approved by the University and will be added to the offering. This programme will provide a direct learning pathway from a Bachelor’s degree or NQF 7 Diploma, directly to the sought after MBA Programme,” he concludes.