Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business has clear vision for its future

Its ambition is to be the best in Africa, the best in the world, and to change society for the better. It’s fair to say that the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business (GSB) is not setting the bar low with its targets for the next four years.

Two years into her tenure, director Catherine Duggan reckons that the GSB has entrenched its status as an African “Ivy League” business school. Covid, and an extended leadership hiatus that preceded her appointment in September 2020, had affected the direction and confidence of the school.

Now, she says, any doubts have gone. The school’s 2022-2026 strategic goals have clarified its vision and intent.

There are three goals. The first is to be a global pacesetter for research, teaching and thought leadership. This will be focused on understanding, and finding creative solutions to, “critical challenges in complex environments”.

The second is to be the leading authority in understanding business and the business environment in Africa, and the pre-eminent business school linking African experience and global relevance.

And third, Duggan wants the school to use its knowledge and position to drive positive societal change in SA and beyond.

Historically, she says, the GSB has “positioned itself as a bridge between the African continent and the rest of the world”. Its MBA and executive education programmes are ranked by the London Financial Times and it boasts “triple crown” accreditation by the three leading international accreditation agencies in the UK, the US and Europe.

It has direct links with leading business schools around the world and its geographical position, in Cape Town, makes it a popular destination for international academic students wanting an African experience.

At least, it did. Covid has deterred most from travelling in the past two years. Duggan expected a recovery this year, before discovery of the Omicron variant last November persuaded many countries to briefly ban travel to and from SA. By the time the ban was lifted, many foreign students had made other plans.

Even so, Duggan says the development of virtual, online education has allowed many to study through the GSB. “We have quite a lot of international students studying for the PhD and for master’s in commerce and development finance.”

She adds: “A lot of people come to us because they want to learn about Africa.” That expertise has been deepened with the appointment of several African academic specialists. She says: “All the new faculty have real fieldwork expertise in Africa. With them, we instantaneously reinforce our position as being the business school with the biggest footprint in African expertise.”