Richfield Graduate Institute of Technology MBA Faculty

Prof Lyal White, PhD

Prof. Lyal White is the Founding Director of the Johannesburg Business School (JBS) at the University of Johannesburg; a Research Associate at the Brenthurst Foundation, a Think Tank established by the Oppenheimer Family in 2004; and a Board Member of the Association of African Business Schools (AABS). He holds several visiting faculty positions with business schools and executive programmes around the world and is strategic advisor to multiple companies expanding into Africa and other new global markets.

A unique differentiator of the Richfield MBA is the fact that it is accessible and adapted to our modern times and changing conditions, fit for the future world of work, in both delivery and curriculum. This accessibility involves a carefully crafted combination of modules and faculty in a collective product, resulting in the desired outcome for our students. The MBA involves a dynamic engagement of expert knowledge, cutting edge academic insight and practical experience relevant for real-world application. It is innovative, interactive, and inclusive, constantly exploring new frontiers of business learning and practical application for a sustainable impact in society and well beyond conventional ‘business as usual.

The Module on International Business Strategy delves into the global environment of business, exploring the broad range of themes and stakeholders that impact and influence business decisions and developments around the world. This is a dynamic area of study and an application that seeks a deeper understanding of concepts and constructs that inform our existing landscape, while exploring new realms of International Business and fresh approaches to strategy. COVID-19 has accelerated global megatrends, bringing the future of work, digitisation, nuances in globalisation and intercultural connectedness, to the fore. These and a broad range of other issues are at the core of international business strategy, as the role and purpose of business are redefined in a changing society, for a global community. This module will not simply look to predict the future, but informed by a deeper appreciation of contextual intelligence, students will be equipped to create their desired future.”

Mrs Zipho Wonci

Zipho Wonci is an ACMA, CGMA charter holder. She holds a GIBS MBA, a Postgraduate Diploma in General Management from GIBS and a BCom Investments Management degree from the University of Pretoria. She is a Certified Director through the Institute of Directors in South Africa (IoDSA). Mrs Wonci is a CFO at Kimberly Clark South Africa and has 14 years of experience working in multi-national companies as a Finance leader. Mrs Wonci has experience as a lecturer of CIMA Strategy level subjects at the College of Charted Accountants (COCA). She also consults and gives talks on the topic of Women in Leadership. She recently co-authored and published an academic paper unpacking Invisible Gendered Dynamics in South African Boardrooms. She is passionate about empowering women and raising courageous leaders.

According to Mrs Wonci, the Richfield MBA is designed for disruption, creating a future-proof generation of leaders.

Mrs Wonci’s module in the Richfield MBA is designed to equip students with relevant, practical and strategic finance insights that will enable them to understand, evaluate and make sound financial decisions in any business.

Neil Govender

Neil holds a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) – GIBS (Electives: Marketing Strategy, Corp. Finance), is qualified in Advanced Marketing & Sales – Nestle Executive program in Switzerland, holds a Post Graduate (Honours) Marketing – IMM and a Bachelor of Commerce Degree (BComm) – University of South Africa. Neil is a curious, innovative, passionate, and resilient individual with extensive and varied experience within the FMCG sector, as well as a very keen ability to analyse and synthesize information, translating it into actionable insight that drives commercial decisions for business growth. Neil is currently Head: Insights, Analytics Strategy & Marketing Capabilities at Distell. As an MBA facilitator, his intuitive feel for the brands and trade environment, combined with strong numerical ability, will provide valuable experience in teaching students the fundamentals of maintaining symbiotic relationships through robust engagement, negotiation and persuasion, across internal senior stakeholders, external business partners, and multi-cultural global teams.

Dr Kiru Pillay, PhD

Dr Pillay holds a PhD in Information Systems from the University of KwaZulu-Natal and is a visiting academic attached to the LINK Centre at the University of Witwatersrand and Wits Business School, with primary responsibility for postgraduate supervision with some lecturing responsibilities. He has over 30 years of experience in the ICT sector, with the first 23 years of that time spent as an ICT practitioner working locally and globally in various roles. He has eight years of experience in an academic and research environment and has been based at three South African universities both on a full-time, and currently on a part-time basis.

Dr Pillay is presently in the Public Sector Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services (DTPS), where he is responsible for the national cybersecurity mandate and the management of the national Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT). He is also involved in the operationalisation of the Department’s Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) initiatives.

Dr Craig Gokhale, PhD

Dr Gokhale holds a Master’s degree with a focus on web-based education and has a doctorate with research in the cybersecurity domain. He is currently based at the University of Zululand where he heads the e-learning division within the Teaching and Learning Centre. His research and its implementation focus on illicit traffic on the dark web in South Africa. His research has been published both in Springer books and in international journals focusing on cybersecurity. Dr Gokhale has extensive experience in the academic sector with over 15 years of lecturing in both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes.

Dr Noluxolo Gcaza, PhD

Dr Gcaza holds a Bachelor of Technology in Software Development, Master of Technology in Information Technology and Doctorate in Information Technology from Nelson Mandela University. From the genesis of her academic journey, Dr Gcaza has been captivated by the domain of cybersecurity, and she is currently a Research Group Leader at the CSIR, where she is responsible for the provision of strategic and technical leadership, including people management, business development, financial sustainability and operations management to research group initiatives.

Dr Kriyanka Moodley, PhD

Dr Moodley holds a PhD in Leadership from the Graduate School of Business and Leadership (GSB&L) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), where she is the lead lecturer for the Leadership module in the MBA programme. Her research company, Mind Before Matter (Pty) Ltd, focus on market, consumer, industry and social change research. She has a teaching, research, supervisory and consulting experience in the areas of leadership, change management, organisational behaviour, marketing, management and information technology.

Dr Moodley’s research unpacks our current economic reality rooted in the global eco-system of cultural, ecological, social and political contexts, interwoven and grown in uncertain, multifaceted, and unpredictable ways. She is deeply motivated to lead change in turbulent situations which require a change on the part of change agents, leaders and individuals to a more open mindset that is focused on emerging changes.

Mrs Ziphozihle Zajiji

Mrs Zajiji is an ACMA, CGMA charter holder, and holds an MBA and Postgraduate Diploma in General Management from GIBS, as well as a BCom Investments Management degree from the University of Pretoria. She is a Certified Director through the Institute of Directors in South Africa and is also a Finance Director at Mondelez International with 13 years of experience working in multinational companies in various finance roles.

Mrs Zajiji is a part-time lecturer of CIMA strategy-level subjects at the College of Chartered Accountants. She also consults and gives talks on the topic of Women in Leadership. She recently co-authored and published an academic paper on Invisible Gendered Dynamics in South African Boardrooms. Mrs Zajiji is married and a mother, and is passionate about empowering women and raising courageous girls.

Dr Sonny Ako-Nai, PhD

Dr Ako-Nai holds a Doctorate in Business administration and an MBA from the Graduate School of Business and Leadership from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He has over 20 years of industry experience in the strategic use of IT in organisations, including over six years within Unilever across various African countries. Dr Ako-Nai is an academic and business management consultant with a focus on IT consultancy and advisory services who assists boards and senior management to effectively deploy and govern technology use in an ethical and profitable manner. As an advocate of good corporate governance, Dr Ako-Nai is a member of the Institute of Directors and a board member of an NPC where he champions good governance by enabling the board to better understand corporate governance principles and structures.

Ms Dudu Msomi

Ms Msomi has a BA Hons. from the University of Natal, Durban and a Postgraduate Diploma in Advertising and Marketing from AAA School of Advertising. She has a Postgraduate Diploma in Corporate Governance (RAU) and an MBA from GIBS. She is an Institute of Directors Fellow and an independent non-executive on boards, one of which is the South African Reserve Bank (SARB). Ms Msomi is the Chairperson of the FSCA, OPFA and FAIS Ombud HR Committees and sits on their respective Remuneration Committees. She has a seat on the Vodacom Foundation Advisory Board and is a Trustee on the Humulani Trust of the listed company, Invicta Holdings. Ms Msomi is the founder and CEO of Busara Leadership Partners, a research-orientated strategic advisory and consulting company whose expertise is in facilitating the development and effectiveness of leaders to achieve their desired goals.

Dr Sara Bux, PhD

Dr Bux holds a Bachelor of Pedagogics Hons. in Education, a Masters in South African Literature, an MBA, and a Doctorate in Business Management: Entrepreneurship, and currently advises on the board of an international youth leadership programme. Dr Bux joined the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants in March of 2017. Prior to that, she worked at the Gordon Institute of Business Science, Allan Gray Orbis Foundation, Junior Achievement South Africa, and as a high-school teacher for 23 years. She is passionate in her belief that education is one of the most important levers that can address transformation optimally. As a keen advocate for access to quality education, Dr Bux has spent all her professional career in the education sector.

Dr Stephen Akandwanaho, PhD

Dr Akandwanaho holds a BSc in Information Technology, a Master of Information Technology and a Doctorate in Computer Science from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, and has more than 15 years of experience in teaching and research. He has worked in various institutions of learning, and in various roles in academia. He served as a research director for Richfield until he was appointed its Chief Academic Officer. His research interests include artificial intelligence, machine learning (neural networks), global optimisation for combinatorial problems (evolutionary algorithms), hyper-heuristics, cybersecurity, big data analytics and e-learning. He serves as an editor for six international journals and as a reviewer for many reputable journals. Dr Akandwanaho has strong competencies and extensive experience in curriculum review and programme development and is widely published in academic journals.

Ms Maggie Mojapelo

Ms Mojapelo is an MBA graduate and has also successfully completed executive leadership programmes both locally and globally with institutions such as Harvard Business School, and is an executive coach, facilitator, speaker and business motivational speaker both locally and globally. She has more than 20 years of experience, having held specialist and executive leadership positions in companies such as IBM, Avon Justine, Nedbank, and Coca-Cola prior to starting and running her own business 11 years ago. Ms Mojapelo is a chairperson of boards and board committees, and founder of The HR Touch, a business management consulting company that enables businesses to achieve their strategies. Her business management, corporate governance, and leadership experience cover a variety of companies and industries including manufacturing, property, financial services, fund management, mining, retail, pharmaceuticals, FMCG, motor, public sector, gaming, hospitality, and ICT, among others. Ms Mojapelo is involved in various professional organisations such as the Institute of People Management, the Institute of Board of Directors, the Sirdar Governance Group, which is focusing on building governance for small businesses, and the Young Women Forum.