WINDHOEK - On Thursday, 14 November twenty-one Capricorn Group senior managers who took part in its maiden Senior Management Development Programme (SMDP) graduated in Windhoek. The graduates are from various departments within Capricorn Group and Bank Windhoek.
The programme, facilitated by the group’s Human Capital Department and offered by the University of Stellenbosch Business School (USB) for Executive Development, aims to equip the group’s senior managers with the requisite skills and thorough understanding of leadership within the current and future global business environment.
Bank Windhoek’s managing director Baronice Hans said: “The leadership style in our organisation is to be highly visible and approachable. It is also about being transformative; and integral to this is the ability to listen, be open and engage but most importantly to affect change. It is no accident that visible leadership and transformational change is a strategic pillar for Bank Windhoek. Leadership is about inspiring your entire team, harnessing their skills and talents, steering all these dynamics in the same direction and empowering them to be connectors of positive change in all areas of their lives.”
Capricorn Group’s head of analytics and financial risk, Marizelle Pienaar, was the top-scoring participant winning the prestigious Director’s Award. The winning group that scored the highest combined marks for its presentation and individual marks in three assignments was Anti-Gravity, whose winning project was titled, ‘An investigation into improving the sustainability image of the Bank.’
Bank Windhoek’s head of coverage, André Barnard, spoke on behalf of the graduates. “The SMDP was an excellent opportunity to be exposed to the latest academics and trends across the different modules covered. Our gratitude goes to Capricorn Group for sponsoring the programme, to Bank Windhoek for nominating all the students and supporting us throughout the duration of the course.”
The graduates completed the allocated study school modules, five individual assignments and one group assignment over a six-month period. The modules ranged from Designing Leading-edge Strategies to Operational Effectiveness and Supply Chain Management, and concluding with an Integrated Assignment which infuses thinking and application across all modules.
The programme is aligned with Capricorn Group’s strategy and the Capricorn Way’s Code of Unlocking Potential in all employees across the group, both individually and collectively.
Executives from Bank Windhoek and Capricorn Group who attended the SMDP graduation ceremony said they were proud of what they witnessed. All senior managers passed with flying colours and were commended for doing a great job.