Alumni Talk: Meet Dr. Felleng Yende, who is at the helm of the Fibre Processing & Manufacturing Sector Education and Training Authority (FP&MSETA), and our remarkable alumnus (Image supplied) Dr. Yende is on the rise – her patience, perseverance, resilience and humility give her the momentum to move forward. In addition, she also attributes her remarkable strides largely to the helpful liveliness of those she is closely associated with. That is, family and her supervisors, as well as The Da Vinci Institute’s team, for always being there throughout her research journey when needed. Dr. Yende’s academic curiosity and journey undertook a critical reflective work-based challenge, as articulated in her thesis, after having realised that the nexus of leadership and the 4th Industrial Revolution have been under-researched within the context of organisational adaptability – thus her thesis titled: “Enhancing public sector leadership in the age of the 4th Industrial Revolution…
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ALUMNUS ALERT: Henriette van Twisk, Da Vinci Institute’s Master’s Degree Alumnus (2021) (Image supplied) Henriette, through dedication and commitment has uniquely placed herself as an expert aspiring to make a long-lasting contribution to the field of education, a crucial area towards sustainability. Now armed with a master’s degree from The Da Vinci Institute, and even prior to her having obtained the mentioned qualification, Henriette has been confronting some of the burning issues in recent times – conundrums within the education sector and specifically at the college level. Her dissertation, a diagnostic study, is titled: Summative Evaluation of a Foundational Learning Programme for Technical and Vocational Colleges in South Africa. Henriette states that its chief aim “is to answer the question: Can a foundational learning programme create a learning foundation that will facilitate better pass rates when students enrol at TVET colleges?” A corollary to this question is, “to design,…
Marcus Tebogo Desando: The Man and His Work We are joined today by The Da Vinci Institute’s Masters alumnus and Doctoral candidate, Marcus Tebogo Desando – the outgoing CEO of Arts & Culture Trust. Now, newly appointed as the Director of Prince Claus Fund (Amsterdam). He is a constant fixture of South Africa’s cultural and operatic scene. (Image supplied) In briefly tracing back the origins of Marcus’ artistic journey, he began as a chorister, thus an operatic singing career inevitably ensued, usually a path not abnormal among choral singers, especially here in South Africa. As the years passed, Marcus started to consider charting a career path in operatic stage directing, following advice from his mentor Prof. Angelo Gobbato, to which he moved apace and, over-time, an artistic occupation he became renowned for in the country. He was first an assistant to local and visiting international directors, where he…
We celebrate with our alumnus, Dr Ansie Prinsloo by sharing her journey to remarkability (Image supplied) Dr Ansie Prinsloo is a Da Vinci Doctoral Degree holder who embraces the notion of seeking her truth and treads the path of remarkability, by continually thinking outside the box and garnering her own relevant truths, in her quest to make abundant improvements within the healthcare sector. On speaking of her Doctoral thesis, Dr Prinsloo explains that her thesis, titled, Enhancing healthcare delivery through a framework that integrates inclusivity and quality improvement science, “describes not only my academic work as it plays out in practice but also my passion. The research journey started as an academic inquiry about efficiency and effectiveness in my workplace. At the onset, I thought of myself as the author and creator of the content and learning. During the journey, my perfunctory understanding transcended and grew into an increasing awareness…
It is with great excitement and pride that today we showcase the remarkability of Mr Notius Tarisai, a Master’s alumnus of The Da Vinci Institute. His is a tale we would like to share as he is one of our paragons at the home of remarkability – a place he speaks fondly of. Notius attributes his learning journey at The Da Vinci Institute as being an intellectual metamorphosis for him. He states that, “prior to my enrolment at The Da Vinci Institute, I understood the role of technological innovation in various industries and sectors; through The Da Vinci Institute, however, I was educated on social innovation. I then applied the theory I had learnt to bridge the gap between rural farming systems and commercial farming methods and reconnected the learning outcomes with my rural upbringing and influences in my dissertation.” Having work experience that spans over three decades, says Mr….
Curiosita is one of the Da Vinci principles referring to “an insatiably curious approach to life and an unrelenting quest for continuous learning.” (Gelb, 1998) ABOUT The Curiosita forum is a monthly colloquium for contemporary thinking on the Management of Technology, Innovation and People in a Systemic context, hosted by The Da Vinci Institute. The forum takes the form of a robust and vibrant round-table discussion that consists of two parts. Firstly, a Doctoral student who is also a business leader in his/her own right presents their research to those in attendance, with the aim of receiving input through debate on their research. Then a guest speaker for industry who is also a societal influencer engages the audience on a particular topic, which connects to the TIPS™ Managerial Leadership Framework. The various speakers’ insights and thought-provoking ideas provide our audiences with an engaging experience. Topics discussed are transdisciplinary in nature,…
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…
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: 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…
by Ntokozo Mahlangu, Alumnus/Vice-Chairperson of Council Together with the shift to working from home, delivery modes for higher education have also shifted, embracing technology. Such changes are roundly embraced as the “new normal”. In many respects, this may not be a bad situation depending on how you envisage both the workplace and higher education structures of the future. In terms of higher education, I believe a trend toward partaking in shorter programmes has emerged and may arguably be a very concerning trend when considering long-Covid victims. Long-Covid patients are experiencing significant, and possibly, permanent cognitive loss. It also appears that these effects have been somehow under reported and not thoroughly on public discourse and seem to have slipped under the radar of higher education institutions. Cognitive ability (mental agility) in my opinion, is the heart of teaching and learning. Consider for a moment, a colleague or researcher who has had…