Three hundred female entrepreneurs will, as part of the 10 000 Women project, have received business and management training by the end of the year from the Gordon Institute of Business Science (Gibs), in Illovo, Johannesburg.

The project, which is funded by Goldman-Sachs and managed and delivered by Gibs, was launched in March 2008. It is a worldwide project that teaches women who already have businesses how to develop their businesses, explains director Jonathan Cook.

To qualify for selection, the applicant must have been a business owner running her own business, the business revenue must be between R200 000 and R7-million, the business must be based in Gauteng or within three hours’ drive of Johannesburg and the business must employ more than five people.

“Building on that platform, we are creating an enterprise development project which will help small businesses grow and benefit from procurement contracts,” he tells Engineering News.

Further, Cook notes that logistics management is at the heart of business and this has led to one of the business school’s most recent projects, the Gibs Supply Chain Executive Roundtable, which was launched this year. A group of companies sign up yearly and meet four times a year. This is valuable to the members of the roundtable as they benefit from information and research findings and business ideas, as well as from local and international developments in supply chain management.

Cook adds that supply chains are of particular interest to those companies that have succeeded or are determined to succeed in emerging markets, as superior logistics creates a competitive advantage. In South Africa and the rest of Africa, supply chains pose interesting challenges, for which Gibs is helping to find solutions.

He adds: “We need to identify global best practice for the supply chain industry and adapt the concepts for South Africa. We cannot simply rely on foreign concepts – we need local relevance.”

Infrastructural challenges such as poor roads, inadequate rail links and storage facili- ties mean that entrepreneurs need to think creatively about transporting goods from one place to another.

The roundtable is affiliated to similar international associations promoting best global practice, enabling entrepreneurs to share expe- riences and congregate to discuss the availability of resources, adds Cook.

He says the first meeting of the Gibs Supply Chain Executive Roundtable took place in July, during which 12 companies signed up, with 18 to 20 companies expected to be involved by the end of the year. Companies such as Nike, Sasol and Tiger Brands, to name a few, were represented.

Further, Cook notes that technology- enhanced learning is developing quickly worldwide. Such developments include universities currently offering massive online open courses and credit-bearing courses to scale.

GIBSdirect is a set of online courses and resources that enables students to take all the Gibs project management and development modules. GIBSdirect provides courses that are specifically tailored to suit the online learning environment. The fully integrated blended learning approach combines lecture notes, articles, case studies, practical examples and video clips. Discussion forums are also available to provide opportunities to interact with Gibs lecturers and fellow students.

Individual delegates and companies can register for an online Programme for Management Development certificate, individual business disciplines, specialist courses, business essentials and customised programmes.

The concept of ‘flipping’, first used by the Khan Academy, in California, entails students dealing with the course content at home so that time in the classroom can be reserved for application and discussion.

Cook explains that, in 2014, a hybrid version of MBA modules will be formulated in such a way that two of the seven sessions will be offered online for some of the MBA modules. “This means that students can focus on the basic content at home and its application in the classroom for the bulk of the course,” adds Cook.

Discussions between the South African Business School Association (Sabsa) and the Council on Higher Education (CHE) have led to a change in MBA requirements for 2016.

From this date, applicants will be expected to have undertaken four years of tertiary education, instead of the current three.

Cook explains that Gibs is adjusting its MBA curriculum in such a way that it will not change the students’ experience as they undertake the MBA degree, but rather ensure that the CHE requirements are met. This entails splitting the material currently covered in the two-year MBA into a one-year postgraduate diploma and a one-year master’s-level MBA to meet the requirements of the CHE and cover the material currently included in the MBA over two years.

“As a member of Sabsa, Gibs has been part of the discussions on the new MBA requirements and we are happy with the arrangement that has been proposed,” he adds.

Innovation, a challenge that business is faced with because of the dynamic nature of the world, is a characteristic that Gibs strives to embody, says Cook, highlighting that earlier this year, the business school created the iLab, which is a space for innovation. It is unlike a conventional classroom in that it is designed and decorated differently with unconventional seating and colours, and has active learning equipment such as puzzles that are aimed at stimulating creative thinking.

“Problems are approached by taking sound, vision, taste and texture into account to facilitate the development of unique products, services and business ideas,” explains Cook.

He adds that this ensures that practical learning takes place. By creating a space where active learning is encouraged, theory can be linked to practice, says Cook.