OPINION | Our business schools have an important role to play in rescuing the economy

South Africa has some of the leading business schools in Africa and the world — but are they playing their part in building the South African economy? 

Despite producing excellent business executives and board members who are in demand both locally and across the globe, their individual and collective contribution to the country’s economy is minimal.

Highly rated South African business schools include the University of Cape Town Business School, Wits Business School, the University of Pretoria’s Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), and the business schools at Stellenbosch University, UKZN, North West University, and the University of the Free State.

Private and internationally linked schools include Regenesys, Henley, Regent and Mancosa.

But with all of these excellent schools turning out hundreds of future leaders every year, we have to ask: why are our business schools not getting involved in public life like their peers in other academic disciplines such as politics, sociology, medicine and law?

South Africa is the most unequal society in the world, has the worst unemployment, especially among the youth, and is experiencing a years-long energy crisis that will endure for many more years.

There is plenty of space for getting involved in the many problems we have. One of the key roles the business schools should play is in said leadership. Business school academics and students alike should be contributing vigorously in public debates, policy discussions and industry forums. They should be at the forefront of influencing and changing business practices, government policies and societal development.

For the past 29 years, since the advent of our democracy, we have heard the same voices of political and economic analysts and nothing much is changing. We need a different player in the theatre and the missing voice is our excellent business schools. If our business schools can produce the calibre of executives who are running our corporates in the private sector, they can definitely come up with ideas to help solve the country’s challenges. However, it seems they have adopted the wait and see approach that is not benefiting anyone.

Why are they not establishing the SMME’s incubation centres focused on assisting emerging businesses until they are stable enough to start creating the desperately needed jobs? The country is well aware that one of the solutions to fight the high unemployment rate, especially among the youths, is the vibrant small businesses. It is not asking too much from these well-resourced and capacitated institutions. Poverty, unemployment, inequality and other social ills in the country are affecting everyone, both rich and poor, those living in abject poverty and affluent areas.

Crime levels in our residential areas have reached undesirable and alarming levels, where everyone is living in fear and most criminals claim poverty and hunger as the pushing factors. This may be viewed as lousy reasons from those who speak from a privilege and a full tummy position, but it is a reality other people face every day.

The business schools should develop programmes that change the status quo in the South African economic market and move South Africans from employment seekers to employment creators. The employment seekers social and economic stratification served a certain purpose in a certain era, but it has long reached its sell-by date.

South African business schools by nature want to embrace a neutral position, however, they will or are facing a huge challenge in doing that because South Africa is a highly politicised country where anything and everything is looked at with a political eye. The South African business schools have a role to play in rescuing this beautiful country from total decay and they must do it now before it is too late. Their role cannot only be measured by their brilliant local and global rankings but by their contribution towards to building of the economy of South Africa.

South African business schools have a responsibility to lead in the economic restructuring project of the country and support the creation of the sustainable small businesses, which played a critical role in poverty alleviation in the five Asian Tigers countries because they have research, skills and human resource capacity. It is high time they form collaborations with various stakeholders of the same mind, including government departments who are interested in the new designs of doing business and creative innovations. Once the collaborations with the relevant stakeholders are in place, the South African business schools will be a breath of fresh air for many decades to come and they will be always remembered for the critical role they played in rebuilding South Africa.

Andries Sibanyoni — Freelance Journalist- BA Hons in Journalism and Media from Wits and MBA Candidate at Henley Business School.