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GET TO KNOW
How do you deal with stress and
unwind outside the office?
As proud as I am of the career-space I
find myself in, I by no means live to work.
I am very fortunate to have a wonderful
family and spending time with them is
very important to me and is probably the
first place I head to in order to recharge,
destress and refocus myself on what is truly
important in life.
If you could go back and change one
career decision what would it be?
One of the greatest lessons I can take away
from my career growth is realising the role
that women can play in the technology
space and with that, the value we add. Being
naturally more nurturing, women tend to
view aspects through different lenses at
times and while we do still focus on the next
revolution, we naturally observe all dynamics
and dimensions, which can add immense
value if leveraged towards sustainability of
success to the broader technology and data
field. If I could go back and come to this
realisation sooner, I would, as part of adding
continuous value within my role.
and ambiguity as to what business value
these technologies can generate. It all comes
back to data being the core component
of realising what opportunities exist and
making new technologies effective. An AI
chatbot can only be as “clever” as the data it
has available to learn from.
What are the region-specific
challenges when implementing new
technologies in Africa?
One of the biggest challenges in South
Africa is skills and the lack of them. The
whole industry, across the public and private
sectors, needs to work hand-in-hand to
ensure the sustainable development of the
required data skills, as well as retaining such
skills in the local market.
What changes to your job role have
you seen in the last year and how do
you see these developing in the next
12 months?
While evolving in my role over the past 24
months, I have seen myself as more than
just another team leader to the people I
work with, and more than just a solution
provider to my clients. While excelling in
ONE OF THE
GREATEST
LESSONS I CAN
TAKE AWAY
FROM MY CAREER
GROWTH IS
REALISING THE
ROLE THAT
WOMEN CAN
PLAY IN THE
TECHNOLOGY
SPACE.
both is important, creating and sustaining
empowering work relationships across the
board makes the difference between deals
and partnerships.
What advice would you offer
somebody aspiring to obtain C-level
position in your industry?
Personal development plans should be
wholistic in nature – think bottom-up and
top-down. My bottom-up advice is, give
your best to whatever is put in front of you
because the reality of the industry is that
you are only as good as your last success (or
failure). My top-down level advice for those
looking to grow into the C-level is, lift your
head up sometimes. To succeed at this level,
you need to be flexible and always have a
grasp of the ‘big picture’ on the strategic
level of the organisation – and contribute on
that level. n
What do you currently identify as
the major areas of investment in
your industry?
I believe that there is an increased
investment in data and aspects associated
to using data more effectively. Globally,
we are seeing many explore aspects like
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine
Learning (ML) – where many businesses
are looking to invest. In South Africa, while
conversations around these areas are also
being had, there is still a sense of reluctance
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