A New World Needs New Ideas

Our programmes equip leaders for fast-growing emerging markets and critical global challenges

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About Us

A distinctly African business school with a global reach

#1

University in Africa

50+

Years of academic excellence

23 000+

Alumni from 68 Countries

138+

Nationalities represented

47

Student exchange partners

70+

Corporate partnerships

Research Excellence

Case Writing: Claire Barnardo
Research designed for impact

Rigorous research and innovative teaching that informs the business world.

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Solution Space Philippi
Award-winning
cases

Excellent teaching case studies focused on African and emerging market challenges.

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Customised courses
A focus on sustainable development

Champion of the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME).

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WHAT OUR STUDENTS SAY

Centres & Initiatives

World-leading centres that reflect our core, capabilities and areas of expertise

Specialised Centres
Allan Gray Centre
The Bertha Centre
Development Finance Centre
Solution Space
Initiatives
Case Writing Centre
Raymond Ackerman Academy
Power Futures Lab
Affiliations & Partnerships
Lean Institute Africa
Centre for Coaching

DrCatherin

Dr Catherine Duggan

UCT GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS DIRECTOR

"The UCT GSB is uniquely placed to lead some of the most important critical conversations about the future of business that are going on in Africa and around the world. 

Our faculty have tremendous expertise on issues such as social innovation, diversity and inequality, environmental sustainability, the role of business and society, and values-based leadership—very much including leadership under conditions of crisis and uncertainty."

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Ideas Exchange

 
Poetic licence to lead through challenging times
Management Fundamentals

Poetic licence to lead through challenging times

With employees stressed, business leaders worried, and mental health challenges skyrocketing, conventional approaches to preparing leaders for the business world may not be enough. The foundational role of the leader as communicator is more important than ever – and poetry could unlock the deeper self-awareness and connection needed to lead through ambiguity.

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Posted on 21 November 2021 by Babar Dharani
Francois Bonnici and Cynthia Rayner - langa
Entrepreneurship & Innovation

Social change is messy and non-linear – we need approaches that speak to that

The thinking that created many of our deep-rooted social and environmental problems will not get us out of the mess we’re in. If there’s to be any hope of a brighter future for all, we need a new way of thinking about systems change.

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Posted on 17 November 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Dr Kutwlano Ramaboa
Learning & Development

Responding to the demand for sustainability in business

The UCT GSB recently ranked 22nd in the world for its MBA programme out of 147 programmes on the Corporate Knights’ 2021 Better World MBA list of the top 40 global business schools. We spoke to UCT GSB Deputy Director, Dr Kutwlano Ramaboa about how the UCT GSB incorporates sustainability into its programmes.

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Posted on 17 November 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
The hidden ‘systems work’ that is changing the wor
Entrepreneurship & Innovation

The hidden ‘systems work’ that is changing the world

Imagine a world where former gangsters and informal workers become social leaders and women living with HIV are pioneering healthcare workers. A new generation of social-change leaders are doing just this, showing us a new way to overcome systemic and structural barriers at scale.

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Posted on 16 November 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
UCT GSB Turret
Learning & Development

UCT GSB MBA ranks top in Africa on sustainability performance

UCT GSB MBA ranks top in Africa on sustainability performance

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Posted on 11 November 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Silulo Ulutho Technologies..
Emerging Market Business

Youth unemployment must be looked at holistically

COVID-19 has worsened unemployment amongst South Africa’s young adults. Fixing this endemic problem won’t be easy, but a ‘systems thinking’ lens could at least point to the best places to start.

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Posted on 21 October 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Fortune Gamanya
Leadership & Ethics

Crisis ushers in new type of leadership – this time it must stick

The COVID-19 pandemic has tested leadership in ways that few crises have. How do we learn from it, adapt and evolve as leaders?

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Posted on 20 October 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Joy-Marie Lawrence
Leadership & Ethics

Activists in the Boardroom holistic governance in an age of corporate malfeasance

Given the recent spate of corporate misconduct (think Steinhoff, EOH, the Guptas and various State-Owned Entities), more Boardroom activism is required to ensure accountability and prevent future scandals. Board directors should start by cultivating higher levels of self-awareness.

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Posted on 20 October 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Samantha Coom
Learning & Development

How to build a thumb-stopping professional brand, without attending a single networking event, or cocktail party

LinkedIn, like many other social media platforms, experienced a boom over the pandemic. But it remains the ultimate platform for creating a professional brand that gets you noticed and hired, both locally and internationally.

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Posted on 20 October 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Breaking point for South Africa’s youth
COVID-19

Breaking point for South Africa’s youth

COVID-19 has exacerbated the pressures on the mental health of young people; we have to intervene now if we are to avert a national disaster.

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Posted on 11 October 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Cyber security: Professor Herman Singh
Emerging Market Business

Cyber security: a critical risk that’s only set to get worse

The Transnet cyber-attack should sound a warning bell to vulnerable State Owned Enterprises and private sector firms that have been slow to beef up their cyber security systems. The alarming rise in ransomware attacks means many are only one click away from disaster.

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Posted on 6 September 2021 by Herman Singh
WIB Conference 2021
Learning & Development

Can empathy help drive economic growth and transformation?

The UCT GSB's annual Women in Business conference will look at ways in which human connection and experience can strengthen businesses and help to grow the economy in a transformative way.

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Posted on 16 August 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Alumni Reunion Icon
Learning & Development

Annual Alumni Reunion Weekend to delve into how leaders are responding to global challenges with a multidisciplined approach

Join the UCT GSB 2021 Alumni Reunion Weekend in October to hear expert speakers discuss how to remain relevant while navigating uncertainty under the theme Knowledge Across Disciplines.

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Posted on 5 August 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Four sure ways to promote diversity at top levels
Management Fundamentals

Four sure ways to promote diversity at top levels

Researchers from the UCT Graduate School of Business asked black South African men and women what needs to change in the workplace to encourage them to apply for top jobs, here’s what they said.

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Posted on 5 August 2021 by Babar Dharani
EMBA alumnus Christophe Viarnaud
Learning & Development

Powering the continent’s growth through collaboration with entrepreneurs across Africa

EMBA alumnus Christophe Viarnaud is a man on a mission. The French national has made South Africa not only his home, but a country in which his passion for entrepreneurship and education has launched the ventures of scores of bright start-ups across the continent.

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Posted on 30 July 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Bathabile Mpofu media
Learning & Development

Combining passion with purpose to improve science education for all

Bathabile Mpofu is passionate about empowering young people to become scientists, and with her business, Nkazimulo Applied Sciences, she aims to demonstrate to high school learners the beauty of science in an exciting, hands-on way.

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Posted on 30 July 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
The lack of economic complexity is South Africa’s
Management Fundamentals

The lack of economic complexity is South Africa’s real economic problem

South Africa needs to build a resilient and productive economy that fosters rapid learning, adaptation to new conditions, technological innovation, and the expansion of goods and services to an ever-widening group of products. And this can only happen with the assistance of the state rather than despite it.

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Posted on 26 July 2021 by Thomas Koelble
Kosheek Sewchurran We need leaders and managers
Learning & Development

We need leaders and managers who have the skills and moral compass to build a just world

We need leaders and managers who have the skills and moral compass to build a just world

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Posted on 24 June 2021 by Kosheek Sewchurran
Solving South Africas Problems Media
Entrepreneurship & Innovation

Solving South Africa's problems from the inside out

To change the world, social innovators have to first change themselves, argue academics from the UCT GSB

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Posted on 21 June 2021 by UCT GSB Press Office
Beverly Shrand - Healthy workplaces are foundation
Management Fundamentals

Healthy workplaces are foundational for a healthy society

Business has a critical role to play in fostering diversity and inclusion and building healthier workplaces and societies in the wake of the crisis.

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Posted on 20 May 2021 by Beverly Shrand
Managers will need Media
Learning & Development

Managers will need a new mindset to lead in a technology-driven world

The 4th Industrial Revolution offers businesses new opportunities for growth and inclusivity - but it will be critical to invest in the essential capabilities of, especially, managers to cash in on this dividend

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Posted on 7 March 2019 by Mzoxolo Gulwa

UPCOMING EVENTS

 

PGDIP Info Session Webinar

 07 December 2021
 13:00 (GMT+2)

Join us for an information session webinar about the UCT GSB's Postgraduate Diploma in Management Practice (PGDip).

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Allan Gray Speaker Series Webinar: Prof. Mary Gentile

 07 December 2021
 18:30 (GMT+2)

"Giving Voice to Values: The 'How' of Values-Driven Leadership"

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