Page 5 - KZN Business Sense Vol.2 No.5

Africa’s unlikely heroes
Professor Theuns
Pelser, Dean and
Head: Graduate
School of Business from the development ambitions
and Leadership,
University of
KwaZulu-Natal
E the availability of key skills,
veryone is in
agreement;
Africa and
The Middle East will drive
growth for the world for the
coming thirty years, just as Asia
has done for the last thirty. By
the year 2050, the population of
Africa will reach 2.4 billion, i.e.
double what it is today. Parallel
to this, we are seeing the rise of a
new African middle class – better
off and better educated – who
are demanding more in terms
of consumption, housing and,
of course, governance. All these
changes are having the effect of
attracting new companies, as
well as the best talent, to benefit of managers in
of Africa and The Middle East.
It’s no wonder, then, that 72%
of CEOs are concerned about
particularly with 48% planning
to increase headcount in the
coming year. And it explains
why by far the most CEOs (75%)
say that a skilled, educated and
adaptable workforce should be
a priority for business in the
country where they’re based.
According to the 19th Annual
Global CEO Survey from
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC),
this is such a vital factor that
CEOs see it as a top priority for
both business and government –
together.
The problem of human capital
is today one of the three principle 1994, a reaccreditation of the attract and develop practicing
investment priorities, and has
been since 2014,
for more than 30%
Africa. According
to a study entitled
‘Africa Business
Agenda’ from PwC,
75% of these same
managers state
that a lack of key
skills is threatening
growth. In
addition, there is
currently a lack of
capacity to develop
new managers.
Africa has far too
few good formal
business schools to
meet the need for management
education.
The Graduate School of
Business (GSB) was started in
1974 in the then University of Administration (MBA) is an
Durban-Westville (UDW). In
MBA was required and the
GSB earned the reputation Quality Committee, the National
of being the first historically Review of the MBA programme
black university authorised to was concluded at the end of 2015.
grant MBA degrees. In 2004, The new MBA programme’s
UDW merged with the then design, learning resources and
University of Natal, the MBA assignments from the GSB&L
became the flagship offering encourage students to engage
of the newly formed Graduate actively with the learning content
School of Business (GSB) in through the extensive use of case
what was now the University studies, class discussions and
of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). practical exercises to assist them
The merger also brought about to apply the learning in real-life
the college-based model at scenarios and to develop problem
UKZN, and the GSB became solving skills to develop creative
part of the College of Law and solutions for addressing our
Management Studies (CLMS). In current challenges.
2011, the University underwent
a restructuring process and the A Masters of Business
Leadership Centre became part Administration (MBA) signifies
of the GSB, forming the current that an individual has become a
Graduate School of Business and specialist or master of the skills
Leadership (GSB&L). necessary to manage a business
or operation. In the final analysis,
The Master in Business what those skills are subject to
is constant scrutiny and change.
appropriate programme to In this regard, the Graduate
School of Business & Leadership
middle managers. The MBA is ideally placed to contribute
degree is an internationally to the development of middle
recognised brand that signifies managers to unlock the potential
management and leadership for growth in Africa. n
training. Under the auspices of
the Council on Higher Education pelser@ukzn.ac.za
and the Higher Education http://gsbl.ukzn.ac.za
UKZN GSB&L MCOM graduates in local economic development
5