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The month of September, a period where we tilt in the direction of our cultural heritage in South Africa has arrived. It is further signified by our celebration of the actual day of heritage (September 24), which serves as a part of the many values inculcated into South Africa’s public life by the democratic order. In the process, inevitably implying unity amongst all people. This is a time when the cultural quintessence that forms as a part of our rainbow nation – its unique eleven official languages, ethnic diversity, thus varied traditions and celebrations – reverberate in remarkability. In such a propitious time as this for culture, we appreciate the diverse lexicon of dialects that South Africa is enriched with, as such is arguably intelligible beyond South African borders. Think of Setswana from Botswana, Sesotho from Lesotho, or Swazi from Eswatini (and other languages such as Ndebele). Crossing, as it…
some reflections by our Executive Dean Academic: Dr Franzél du Plooy-Cilliers In the current epoch in which we find ourselves, there have been multiple realities we have had to navigate. The global pandemic and the resulting socio-economic crisis that the world is facing, has seen a quagmire of disruptions to the micro-, meso-, macro- and exo systems of the entire eco-system. In some instances, individuals and organisations faced many challenges that threatened their survival, and many people are experiencing additional stress and even threats to their livelihoods. However, in other cases, some very innovative entrepreneurial endeavours have emerged, and several companies came up with creative solutions to some of the challenge that they were facing that changed the way in which they do business. Regardless of the circumstance, it has certainly been a time of evolution, deep reflection and a time of self-reflection. One of the things that I have…
Dr Heather Goode provides some insights as she delves deeper into Tshepo Langa’s book entitled, “The ADI Model: What am I Thinking?” Hidden between the pages of Tshepho Langa’s book is a Richard Templar quote from his book “The rules of management”, who once said “being creative is about finding new and different ways to solve problems”[i]. Therefore, a challenge in leadership is finding ways to shift your thinking, adapt to changing contexts, improve your problem-solving skills, and approach old problems and new contexts with new ideas. Tshepho Langa, who is a faculty member at The Da Vinci Institute, sought to engage with this essential aspect of personal development when he wrote, “The ADI Model: What am I Thinking?”. Tshepho describes writing this book as being “about inspiring intentional mindset change towards a meaningful success and contribution to others.” The book initiates by detailing Tshepho’s own experiences and shifts…
ALUMNI IN THE NEWS
ALUMNI: Meet The Da Vinci Institute’s Alumnus, External Examiner and Visiting Lecturer, Dr Diliah Abigail Mutambara The home of remarkability recently had the pleasure of catching up with one of its own, Dr Diliah Abigail Mutambara, a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) graduate from the class of 2018. This is a recognition of how one of The Institute’s alumni continues to harness her remarkability, utilising the tools of her engaging mind. Originally from Zimbabwe, Dr Mutambara grew up to educationist parents and had a burning desire and insatiable curiosity to always get a deep and more meaningful understanding of the world and its diverse societies. She ultimately got a chance to do so through education, and through the subsequent opportunities she got of touring the world. In consequence, her touring around, and exploring of, the globe has arguably enhanced her world view about the international scene of education. A voyage by…
In women’s month we continue to showcase some of our remarkable female alumni and today we profile one of our recent Doctoral graduates – Dr Shannon Nell This work is dedicated to nursing leaders – whoever and wherever you may be. I honour you. By Dr Shannon Nell Dr Nell comes from the health fraternity and has been a nurse for four decades. She has co-created in a multitude of clinical areas, including maternity, paediatrics, adult intensive care, and paediatric oncology, as well as in nursing education. Currently, Dr Nell serves as the Director of Nursing and Nursing Education at Netcare, a position she has held for the last seven years. We salute our remarkable Davincian, for all that she has done and continues to do on the frontline in our country, giving daily of herself to the betterment of others. Besides her extensive experience, Dr Nell also holds several…
A shining star in the Da Vinci Galaxy is our Doctoral Alumnus Dr Estie Serfontein, an agile, aligned and engaged managerial leader in the aviation industry. Dr Estie Serfontein is a dynamic and remarkable female leader of the aviation industry, and a Doctoral alumnus who flexes her academic muscles with her research output. Dr Serfontein is also a self-motivated leader with passion and resilience in abundance and extensive experience in the aviation industry. She is the quality assurance manager for Execujet Aviation. Her skills have led her to successfully manage teams and processes as a strategic driver of programmes that allow for continuous quality improvement and efficiency through audits and special projects. Through her experience, Dr Serfontein has amassed a breadth of knowledge in analysing data and orchestrating project implementations, as well as ensuring compliance with local and federal regulations. Ever a consistent high achiever, Dr Serfontein not only successfully…