News Archives - Omni HR Consulting
Category Archives for "News"

Omni HR Consulting announces CPD Global Certification

Omni HR Consulting announces CPD Global Certification

The landscape of learning and development is continuously evolving; and rightly so. The demand in the knowledge economy is placing pressure on providers and practitioners alike, to not only stay abreast of changes but bring forward solutions that enables their learners and clients to receive quality learning content and the associated recognition for learning achievements.

Omni HR Consulting has taken the decision to seek global certification with The CPD Services in the UK; benchmarking the organisation and its programmes against global standards, which will enable their learners to receive CPD points upon meeting specific learning requirements.

Managing Director, Lize Moldenhauer and Cindy Londt, Operations Executive provides insight into this strategic decision:

Q: Why has Omni chosen to get certification with The CPD Services?

LM: We considered certification from a global perspective to allow transference of skill from a continuous professional development, specifically because the environment in which we are currently working and engaging, requires individuals to continuously be on a learning cycle. For us, CPD was important from a broader spectrum (and not localized) to allow us to engage with people irrespective of geographical borders and upon research, settled with the credibility offered by The CPD Services.

CL: From a content perspective, we believe our learning content is academically and research grounded. The CPD gives the solution additional credibility and global recognition.

Q: Was the process towards obtaining certification rigorous?

CL: The actual engagement process and openness has been smooth in terms of access into the world of seeking CPD accreditation. Rigor is set on the actual quality assuring of our content, processes and methodology. Critical questions around the strategic objective, learning outcome objectives and showing our quality in the content methodology processes is what supports the whole CPD certification in the first place.

Q: Will Omni seek to obtain Council on Higher Education accreditation to support local market needs?

LM: Short answer is yes! Open and effective communication is required, inviting stakeholders to engage, especially for private provision looking to enter the higher education space.  The barrier to entry is quite significant. We want to provide best in class solutions for where we are planted, which is South Africa, whilst considering what avenues provide our clients and learners with a global alternative.

Q: What does the certification with The CPD Services mean for the value chain?

LM: Both the organisation (in this case Omni) and the programmes or events we submit to The CPD Services will be certified. In other words, one would say the programme is worthy of X amount of credits, for X amount of learning that took place.

CL: The quality of the organisation as well as the individual programmes are evaluated. We have already submitted one of our programmes ( including full curriculum, learning structure and work-integrated learning assignments) within our Business and Leadership Academy, called Disruptive Leadership and I am comfortable to say, we should receive certification early March.

LM: In describing the Disruptive Leadership programme in one word, I will opt for progressive! The reason (for me) is the way in which the curriculum and the journey has been formulated to support leadership development. We are asking individuals to be self-directed. Leaders are being placed within a framework to own self-direction, which is a mechanism where organisations need to shift and change from a culture of learning to where individuals take personal responsibility and accountability for learning so that they may grow and have reward within their career framework.

Omni has an additional global intake in May for their progressive Disruptive Leadership programme. More details about the learning programme can be found here.


Related Posts

Omni HR Consulting has decided to seek global certification with The CPD Services in the UK, benchmarking the organisation and its programmes against global standards.

After implementing Open-Source Training in 2021, Omni HR Consulting is shifting gears to bring to its community, nine sessions in 2022 starting at the end of March!

The value-alignment has seen Omni’s mission to be disruptive in education, expedited with the introduction of an e-Assessment and e-Portfolio, powered by P4P.

The Lunchtime Series Podcast

The Lunchtime series podcast

Creativity and Innovation in the Workplace

Crafting a way in which we can work alongside technology

Kevin Britz, Founder and Co-Host of The Lunchtime Series Podcast, Internationally Accredited Enneagram Coach and Change Management Specialist in People & Culture, Training and Leadership, interviews Brand and Marketing Executive at Omni, Cassandra Julius off the back of her recent Open-Source Training session on Creativity and Innovation in the Workplace.

Watch this 30min on-demand recording to hear some practical tips from Cassandra for young leaders in the world today and walk away with key nuggets of wisdom to implement back into your organisation/team.

Join us for upcoming sessions based on topics related to the critical and essential skills required for Workforce 2030. Once a month these complimentary, virtual sessions offer our community an open platform to dialogue, engage and explore key topics that most organisations and especially leaders are grappling with.

Related Posts

Listen to this 30min on-demand recording to hear some practical tips from Cassandra for young leaders in the world today.

A fire-side chat between the team at Omni HR Consulting who were instrumental during the launch of the organisations’ initiative called: Open-Source Training.

Omni has a very clearly defined Digital Transformation Strategy (DTS) that has seen us transition to an e-Learning platform that meets the SAQA, DHET and …

The Lunchtime Series Podcast

THE LUNCHTIME SERIES PODCAST
Creativity and Innovation in the Workplace

Crafting a way in which we can work alongside technology

Kevin Britz, Founder and Co-Host of The Lunchtime Series Podcast, Internationally Accredited Enneagram Coach and Change Management Specialist in People & Culture, Training and Leadership, interviews Brand and Marketing Executive at Omni, Cassandra Julius off the back of her recent Open-Source Training session on Creativity and Innovation in the Workplace.

Listen to this 30min on-demand recording to hear some practical tips from Cassandra for young leaders in the world today and walk away with key nuggets of wisdom to implement back into your organisation/team.

Join us for upcoming sessions based on topics related to the critical and essential skills required for Workforce 2030. Once a month these complimentary, virtual sessions offer our community an open platform to dialogue, engage and explore key topics that most organisations and especially leaders are grappling with.

Related Posts

Listen to this 30min on-demand recording to hear some practical tips from Cassandra for young leaders in the world today.

A fire-side chat between the team at Omni HR Consulting who were instrumental during the launch of the organisations’ initiative called: Open-Source Training.

Omni has a very clearly defined Digital Transformation Strategy (DTS) that has seen us transition to an e-Learning platform that meets the SAQA, DHET and …

[Special Episode] Open-Source Training 2022

Open-Source Training in 2022

Special Episode

[Podcast]

A fire-side chat between the team at Omni HR Consulting who were instrumental during the launch of the organisations' initiative called: Open-Source Training.

In this episode, the discussion is lead by: Cassandra Julius (Marketing Executive) and is joined by Lize Moldenhauer (Managing Director), Cindy Londt (Operations Executive), Jade Ables (Marketing Campaign Manager) and Sharon Benting (ETD Resource Executive).

Discussion includes:

  1. The intent behind the concept of Open-Source Training and why Omni chose to pursue this initiative?
  2. An overview of the key topics/concepts delivered on in 2021
  3. Insight into what organisations/businesses/leaders may still be grappling with, related to the concepts of: Organisational Change, Emotional Intelligence and Ethical & Authentic Leadership
  4. Open-Source Training in 2022: what to look forward to; the approach; kick-off sessions and the new add-on concept of Thought Leadership.

For more information and to book for these insightful (and free) training sessions, click here.  All sessions are scheduled between 4-5pm SAST.

Omni HR Consulting - Business Development, Training and Consulting

Business and People Development Solutions through Training and Consulting Services. Our primary focus is to provide innovative and industry related training.

"It’s quite a privilege to be part of a broader community and be able to sow back into the community. When we looked at being part of a value chain and how we give back, the term open-source was birthed."

- Lize Moldenhaur | Managing Director -

Related Posts

Listen to this 30min on-demand recording to hear some practical tips from Cassandra for young leaders in the world today.

A fire-side chat between the team at Omni HR Consulting who were instrumental during the launch of the organisations’ initiative called: Open-Source Training.

Omni has a very clearly defined Digital Transformation Strategy (DTS) that has seen us transition to an e-Learning platform that meets the SAQA, DHET and …

Open-Source Training | Press Release

Open-Source Training 

Available at No Cost 

After implementing Open-Source Training in 2021, Omni HR Consulting is shifting gears to bring to its community, nine sessions in 2022 starting at the end of March!  The sessions are sponsored by Omni, providing an hour (maximum 90-minutes) of no cost, virtual classroom training based on topics related to the critical and essential skills which form part of our Workforce 2030 curriculum.

The launch of Open-Source Training (OST) took place in May last year, seeing Omni deliver seven sessions on topics ranging from: Redefining Skills Development, Organisational Change, Ethical and Authentic Leadership to Exponential Organisations, scaling in 2021 and beyond.  I had the opportunity to sit down with the team who were pivotal in the launch of OST in 2021, to hear more on the exciting developments in this space.

Q: The intent behind the concept of Open-Source Training and why pursue this initiative?

Lize Moldenhauer, Managing Director at Omni: “it’s quite a privilege to be part of a  broader community and being able to sow back into the community. When we looked at being part of a value chain and how we give back, the term open-source was birthed. Allowing for an open platform, to be a source of information and inspiration and to consider some of the key elements that most organisations and especially leaders grapple with. Over the past year we have been fortunate to have been able to gain great success with running open-source sessions, making a valuable contribution to the individuals that choose to be part of the platform.”

Q: Overview of the key topics delivered on in 2021

Operations Executive, Cindy Londt sheds light on the Workforce 2030 curriculum developed by Omni: “if you look at what we covered last year, and our [own] research aligned to the World Economic Forum, it was around identifying that there were certain skills from a leadership and management perspective that was going to allow us to move forward. Out of that came, 13 curriculums and therefore the different modules of learning and the showcase last year was to create the foundation to springboard us into the topics for this year.”

In the absence of a crystal ball, I did ask the team to consider, what (in their opinion) are organisations, businesses and leaders still grappling with, in the context of concepts such as, organisational change, emotional intelligence and ethical leadership. The response to this question and our full fireside chat can be accessed here.

Q: What to expect and look forward to in OST 2022

Jade Ables, Marketing Campaign Manager at Omni gushes about the developments in the space: “what’s exciting about this year is that our audience can expect a completely different framework. Last year, we focused a lot on thought leadership, looking at research, not only in a South African context, but also in a global context related to the future world of work. This year, we are flipping our delivery and want to look at it in a more practical sense, bringing in the training approach to our sessions, which will be more interactive. For those who do enjoy the more ‘thought leadership’ style, we will be hosting quite a few of those events [too], so ensure that you follow our social pages or sign-up to our mailing list to stay informed.”

The launch session, hosted on the 30th of March is titled, People Management in industry 4.0. For more details on this and the upcoming three virtual open-source sessions, compliments of Omni HR Consulting, visit the website here and reserve your seat!

Related Posts

 

Omni HR Consulting announces CPD Global Certification

Omni HR Consulting has decided to seek global certification with The CPD Services in the UK, benchmarking the organisation and its programmes against global standards.

Read More

 

Open-Source Training | Press Release

After implementing Open-Source Training in 2021, Omni HR Consulting is shifting gears to bring to its community, nine sessions in 2022 starting at the end of March!

Read More

 

Omni & P4P | Collaborative Partnership Announcement

The value-alignment has seen Omni’s mission to be disruptive in education, expedited with the introduction of an e-Assessment and e-Portfolio, powered by P4P.

Read More

Omni & P4P | Collaborative Partnership Announcement

Omni & P4P | Collaborative Partnership Announcement

Omni introduces next wave of Digital Transformation

with Ed-Tech partner, P4P

Omni & P4P | Collaborative Partnership Announcement

The market is saturated with conversations around learning, where the jargon of the day is either online, e-Learning, digital learning or the latest being hybrid learning. Organisations and learning practitioners grapple with how “effective” the transfer of learning takes place in a digital world. Add the complexity of needing to assess learning, against a set of criteria determined by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) and Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO) the notion that any one platform or training provider can achieve this, nearly seems impossible!  

Making worlds collide in Human Capital capability and Ed-Tech; two South-African based organisations forged a collaborative partnership. The value-alignment has seen Omni HR Consulting’s mission to be disruptive in education, expedited with the introduction of an e-Assessment and e-Portfolio, powered by Passion4Performance (P4P). To share more about this exciting partnership is Cindy Londt, Operations Executive at Omni and Darryn Van Den Berg, Co-Founder at P4P. 

Q: Why the collaboration?

CL: Omni is a Private FET College operating nationally within South Africa. As part of the organisations’ digital transformation strategy (nearly three years ago now) within the learning space, it was important for us to review how we evolve and push the boundary, with disrupting education and moving away from the traditional “this is how it’s done”.

Part of the transformation journey was ensuring we move our learning online and achieve accreditation with the SETAs (South African Education and Training Authorities). What started as a barrier due to SETA’s not recognising digital learning, came Omni’s successful transition to achieving accreditation for online learning delivery and a natural progression was to consider, how we do online assessment. The question was, do we insource or outsource this functionality. Our introduction to P4P was a perfect match, as it has allowed us to expedite what we wanted to achieve as part of our digital transformation strategy and that is moving learning and assessment online in one package. 

DvdB: I started tracking Omni about four years ago after our initial conversation did not yield any result. I quite liked their footprint in the market; they are a trusted company in the learning space and their standards are pretty impressive. During that time, P4P has grown as an organisation, so being niche and one of the first in the market to focus on the assessment side, the value we can add now is immensely more. We are excited as both organisations have done quite a lot of learning in the tech space and that is where the synergies are coming together well.

“The shared-value is our passion for wanting to move education forward in South Africa” 

Online Asessment

Q: Who is P4P and what is its core focus? 

DvdB: Passion4Performance (P4P) is the leading e-Assessment and e-Portfolio online platform, founded for the niche purpose of assessment and the assessment process enabling the implementation and adoption of technology on the assessment side of learning. 

Q: Why electronic portfolios? 

CL: We were very clear on our vision from a digital transformation perspective, however, we needed to go through the learning in-house. Once exposed to the P4P system and having the opportunity to work through it, allowed me peace of mind that it ticked all the boxes and aligned to our vision and mission from a learning and development perspective linked to quality, compliance, serving our clients and supporting our learners in an optimal fashion. 

In terms of the accreditation component, Omni and P4P have walked a journey with multiple SETAs. Omni has ensured that its platform was accredited to offer online learning and it was an easier conversation to approach the SETAs regarding P4P and ask the question: can we have the best of both worlds and can we collaborate to achieve a mutual objective? 

e-Portfolio

Q: Does P4P (from a technical perspective) fit into the back-end of an organisations online learning platform? 

DvdB: There are three distinct systems; an LMS (Learner Management System), an e-Learning content offering system and an e-Assessment and e-Portfolio system. A common misconception is that companies who have an e-Learning system, feel they can simply add a file (in that system folder) and now have an e-Portfolio system, however it does not carry the governance side. 

In terms of the collaboration, we make use of Omni Stack; which carries Omni’s LMS and online learning and P4P carries the e-Assessment and e-Portfolio and we are currently exploring the link to create a seamless journey for the learner as the end-user.   

Q: How are learner and client’s data protected in the digital space being created by Omni and P4P? 

CL: Data protection has been an aspect considered and built-in from the start of our digital transformation journey. As part of our Quality Management System, which is a key requirement for accredited training providers (in South Africa) our policies and procedures needed to be adapted for digital and online learning and will now further be enhanced based on the P4P relationship. 

DvdB: When P4P started, we decided to build on the Microsoft Azure Stack which has several protocols already built-in. The co-founder of P4P operates in Europe and therefore our platform is required to comply with GDPR requirements as well.  We have certainly ensured we keep our finger on the pulse from a POPI perspective and its variations across the EMEA band. 

Q:  What does the collaboration between Omni and P4P really mean for clients and skills development in South Africa?

CL: Several organisations still have staff working in the work-from-home model so participating and engaging in online learning is fabulous, however, the portfolio of evidence became a challenge as it is traditionally paper-based. We wanted to remove that barrier, and this is the gap we have addressed through this collaborative partnership.

DvdB: In terms of the practical workplace component that requires assessment, every provider needs to review how evidence will be collected in the digital space. In the Omni space, they have gone and reviewed their work-integrated learning component and adapted it, to still meet the criteria, providing the learner with the opportunity to collect natural evidence within the workplace. The risk that exists for training providers is not being open to digitization. You cannot simply follow the current “low-tech or no-tech” assessment process or assessment evidence requirements, without reviewing the impact on a learner and the quality or type of evidence that can be collected when moving into the digital space. 

Online Assessment

Q: Closing remarks? 

CL: Clients can certainly look forward to being assured that as an organisation we have closed the loop between online assessment to e-Assessment and now e-Portfolios. Clients will have the opportunity to access a holistic and seamless (learning) package and those who support digital transformation will see the benefit in the solution.  As an organisation, we are certainly excited that our partnership with P4P will challenge organisations in South Africa to make the shift and think differently about learning and skills development. 

For more on what Omni is doing and achieving in the digital learning space or for an online demo of their online learning platform, send an email to: [email protected]  


Related Posts

Omni HR Consulting has decided to seek global certification with The CPD Services in the UK, benchmarking the organisation and its programmes against global standards.

After implementing Open-Source Training in 2021, Omni HR Consulting is shifting gears to bring to its community, nine sessions in 2022 starting at the end of March!

The value-alignment has seen Omni’s mission to be disruptive in education, expedited with the introduction of an e-Assessment and e-Portfolio, powered by P4P.

Open-Source Training | 2021

Open-Source Training

No cost sessions, aimed to engage you!

Based on research, our sessions cover relevant topics linked to the 4IR and essential Workforce 2030 skills


Changes in occupational skills sets are required which will ultimately transform the world of work, requiring organisations and employees to remain relevant if they want to benefit from the great opportunities that this digital age provides.


As the Fourth Industrial Revolution advances, it will place a spotlight on leaders – leaders who at their core operate from a foundation of authenticity and ethics.  

Watch Video

Our Sessions

Organisational Change 


Session 3: 28 July 2021

Key Takeaways

Navigate and manage the disruption experienced by an organisation and its people due to a shift in goals, processes, and technologies.

In this session, we unpacked the requirements to develop your ability to navigate and adapt to change. Looking at strategies for leading change - influencing, affecting, and controlling change.


Work will change in the future. Prepare for: fluid gigs; decentralized workforces; motivation to work and technology advances?

EXO – Scaling in 2021 and Beyond


Session 2: 30 June 2021

Key Takeaways

We are living in an Exponential Era filled with mega-trends and therefore need a strategic plan for the Exponential Era … a SPX which considers:

Strategies for Organizational Change and the impact that Massive Transformational Purposes (MTP’s) have on decision-making and how we could leverage IDEAS and SCALE within the environment.


Collaboration at all levels to ensure preparedness for change, disruption, and an increased pace of development is needed.

Leadership: the need to redefine future skills development


Session 1: 26 May 2021

Key Takeaways

Pace is going to accelerate and change strategies alone will not be enough! In this interactive session learn about:


A Massive Transformative Purpose are strategies to achieve rapid growth and an organisational ability to adapt to future requirements. Partnering with Automation provides opportunities for change in job related functions from mundane to innovative work.


From a Management Perspective: address and implement training strategies for new fields of advancement.

Emotional Intelligence for High-Performance Teams


Session 6: 27 October 2021

Key Takeaways

If your goal is to thrive as a leader then expanding (your) self and social awareness creates a path to leading successfully. Emotional intelligent leaders foster safe environments, adjust quickly, and get results.

Develop your self-awareness and social skills by improving your self-regulation and learn how to lead with empathy. Manage your emotions to positively influence the emotions of others is introduced through the concept and value of emotional intelligence in work teams and that of your organisation.


Hybrid Teaming is our future world-of-work and could create relationship challenges, without developing and fostering a culture of emotionally intelligent work teams.


Ethical Leadership


Session 5: 29 September 2021

Key Takeaways

Ethical Leadership may not be a new concept but is needed now, more than ever! Leaders must lead with honesty, moral behaviour and integrity.


Understanding the role of Ethical Leadership is the first step in creating greater positive long-term outcomes for leaders and organisations and the community they impact.


The need and role of Ethical Leadership for the 4th Industrial Revolution is critical. Uncover ethical traits and behaviours by aligning your ethical values, vision, virtue, and voice to that of your organisation.

Individual Change


Session 4: 25 August 2021

Key Takeaways

Culture is the integrated pattern of human behaviour, shaping the trajectory of an organisation. Creating cultural change to harness people’s lasting commitment, requires a deep desire to change.

In this session, we looked at how to develop resilience to change by exploring resilience, mindset, and emotional intelligence. Developing critical skills for a mindset change will equip you to focus on your continuous professional development as the rapid shift to WFH has created new challenges for organisations. 


Leaders are required to experiment with creative solutions that showcase a shared commitment through personal contact.

Our Speakers

Lize Moldenhauer

Managing Director

(Session 1-2 & 5)

Cindy Londt

Operations Executive

(Session 3 - 4)

Cindy-Lee Pike

Learning Strategist

(Session 5)

Sharon Benting

ETD Executive

(Session 6)

Digital Transformation within L&D

Digital Transformation

within L&D


Now On-Demand

A defined digital transformation journey has seen us transition to an e-Learning platform, geared to deliver quality learning in a digital landscape. In our live session, our team shares insights on opportunities for learning continuation from both an Operations and IT/Ed-Tech perspective. Available now, in both video and podcast format

Our Session

Digital Transformation within L&D

06 May 2021

Key Takeaways

  • What is Digital Transformation
  • Why has business been slow to transition / pivot towards digitally transforming L&D
  • Creating Digital Transformation within your organisation (Short-termism vs Sustainable Transformation)
  • Showcase: A Digital Transformation Framework for Learning & Development in 2021 and beyond

Our Speakers

David Londt

Chief Technology Officer

Cindy Londt

Operations Executive

Digital Transformation within L&D

Digital Transformation within L&D 

[Podcast]

Omni has a very clearly defined Digital Transformation Strategy (DTS) that has seen us transition to an e-Learning platform that meets the SAQA, DHET and CHE guidelines and criteria for online learning, over the past 36 months.

In this podcast, our team shares insights, evaluating the best possible route to continue learning in a digital landscape from two-sides of the learning-coin: Operations and IT/Ed-Tech.

"Digital Transformation is about strategy."

- David Londt-

Speaker 1: David Londt
Chief Technology Officer, Omni HR Consulting


Speaker 2: Cindy Londt
Operations Executive, Omni HR Consulting


Related Posts

Listen to this 30min on-demand recording to hear some practical tips from Cassandra for young leaders in the world today.

A fire-side chat between the team at Omni HR Consulting who were instrumental during the launch of the organisations’ initiative called: Open-Source Training.

Omni has a very clearly defined Digital Transformation Strategy (DTS) that has seen us transition to an e-Learning platform that meets the SAQA, DHET and …

Omni HR Consulting partners with The Woman and Youth Empowerment Trust

Omni HR Consulting partners with The Woman and Youth Empowerment Trust

OMNI HR CONSULTING PARTNERS WITH THE WOMAN AND YOUTH EMPOWERMENT TRUST

June 2020 saw Omni HRC formalise its partnership with the WYE Trust, after working in partnership with the organisation since its inception in 2018.

The WYE Trust was constituted with the main directive to help solve the ‘societal problems’ of education and employability of women and youth that have been historically left out of the equation. The trust aims to work in partnership with funders, donors, and Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Schemes to the benefit of the beneficiaries of the trust (Women and Youth) to ensure access to quality education post-school and education for employability.

Solving societal problems and addressing performance gaps

The mandate of the WYE Trust aligns closely with the ethos of Omni. At the heart of Omni’s DNA is the incredible drive to engage on and help solve two key societal problems:

  1. quality post-school education, and
  2. education for employability.

This informs Omni’s engagement and decision-making philosophy around choosing partnerships that aid its drive to make a significant difference.

At a grassroots level, the company wants to be part of the solution.

“We want to be innovators, disruptive in education in such a way that it leads to a sustainable difference for individuals, organisations, communities and our country and the only way to achieve this is to be part of the value chain solution through collaborative partnerships that have the same drive and ethos – to move towards true empowerment and transformation – the equipping of people,” explains Lize Moldenhauer, managing director of Omni HR Consulting and trustee of The Women and Youth Empowerment Trust.

Omni works in consultation with its customers to create solutions to address performance gaps based on their unique value proposition. Everything the company tackles is done through a consultative approach with all objectives, outcomes and tasks underpinned by project management models and protocols with the belief that if each engagement is managed in a consultative manner, you co-create solutions with your clients that will not only address their immediate need but should move the client to receive long term benefit, quantitatively and qualitatively.

“We are here to solve problems, and we need to become masters at co-ordinating the solution-focused approach to client engagement, taking the pressure off our clients so that they can focus on the strategic mandate of their organisation/business unit,” says Moldenhauer.

The relationship with the WYE Trust is no different. Omni has partnered with the trust to provide clients, funders, donors, and Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Schemes with the best solutions. It is not about funding alone; it is about sustainable-funding solutions that lead to real empowerment and transformation for the beneficiaries. An example of a solution crafted specifically to address employability would be the framework designed for the Work Readiness & Entrepreneurship Programme. Omni welcomes engagement to discuss the workings of the framework in more detail.

Solutions offered by the WYE Trust offers

These solutions are best captured by the engagement philosophy of engagement and collaboration. The WYE Trust works on solution-crafting for the specific needs of the stakeholders, but some of the key solutions that they focus on are:

  • Recruitment & Selection of Beneficiaries
  • Socio-economic development
  • Enterprise and Supplier Development
  • Education, Training and Development
  • Hospitality Development
  • Tourism Development, and
  • Research

As stated, The WYE Trust’s main directive is to help solve the “societal problems” of education and employability of women and youth. The trust’s partnership with Omni assists in achieving this goal specifically by working in collaboration with each other. Solutions are engineered from scratch and crafted to address the actual need, instead of the needs being required to fit into a predefined solution.

At Omni, the role that skills development plays in restoring human dignity, empowering individuals, and developing communities is understood, and the company is committed to offering young South Africans opportunities to become self-sufficient by developing their skills set, advancing their education, and making a difference in their communities. The company's track record speaks for itself and in one such collaboration, engineered from scratch, Omni delivered an end-to-end, accredited skills-development solution focused on developing relevant, practical work-readiness and entrepreneurial skills through formal training and workplace experiential learning with a workplace host. The learners who successfully exited the programme could choose to: be employed by the workplace host, or start and run their own business.

The statistical results over the four years were as follows:

Creating equal opportunity and stakeholder value

Charting a future that allows for equal opportunity and ensuring access to quality education post-school and education for employability are key objectives of the WYE Trust, and Omni is perfectly positioned to support these objectives.

The days where businesses can only operate with the intent of bottom-line growth and shareholder value are gone. It is about stakeholder value. Everyone has an ethical responsibility to contribute to solutions that solve fundamental societal problems. This might seem like a strong and sweeping statement, but if the inherent DNA of most successful organisations is analysed, it unlocks the foundational construct that most organisations are birthed to solve ‘societal problems.’ However, what was left out historically of the equation, is the ethical responsibility businesses have to give back; just focusing on profit leads to scarcity, instead of sustainability. 

The WYE Trust has thus chosen to purposefully engage with these two key problems: access to post-school quality education and education for employability. These societal problems cannot be solved in isolation – collaboration with the entire value chain is needed. A willingness to work with the government, other organisations, and society at large is necessary to come up with ongoing sustainable solutions and make a significant difference.

The value chain needs to be affected in such a way that the skills transferred are sought after by businesses, and that the skills lead to unlocking entrepreneurial skills that will, in turn, lead to the growth of emerging small enterprises. 

The WYE Trust has done this by ensuring strong alliances are fostered with the value chain through collaborative partnerships, as the objective cannot be met in isolation. Furthermore, Omni has enhanced the trust’s digital integration in education. Work is being done to enhance e-learning and technology-initiated learning experiences for stakeholders while ensuring this is mapped to the legislative context of South Africa so that customers gain maximum benefit from the engagement.

One of the trust’s foundational pillars is, ‘Creating standards others are drawn to’, and its focus is thus to further enhance excellence in education. This is done by ensuring a contribution to research that will not only impact decision-making but also help steer and navigate beneficial client engagements. Furthermore, learners are given cutting-edge tools for applied competence within the learning frameworks they engage with.

Moldenhauer further explains, “We will be working on ensuring we have an integrated view of problems and realities. Training provision, education and consulting services to businesses, must have a deep understanding of the realities clients are facing. We cannot work in isolation and we need to help navigate the treacherous minefield of various legislation, risks and business challenges and limitations. Omni aims to work with clients to form long-term collaborative partnerships, so that meaningful sustainable results are achieved, and not mere tick-box short-term goals.”

Disruptive education - Applying research to assist with skills development

The core focus areas of the WYE Trust are research and skills development, this is why Omni is such a great fit in terms of applying the research and assisting with skills development.

Having worked exceptionally hard on building a brand that is synonymous with quality, in the context of skills development, which can only be achieved if one has an extreme appetite for excellence and a drive to be part of the forerunners of innovation through effective research and development. Omni has had the privilege of its research being presented and published internationally, such as the North American Business Press Volume 16(1) 2019 Leadership, Accountability and Ethics Leadership, Artificial Intelligence and the Need to Redefine Future Skills Development that in turn underpins our skills development framework 2030 Workforce Skills – future-proofing your competencies.

Omni does nothing in isolation. Research is a critical cornerstone of effective skills development and the company needs to be internationally comparable. That is why one of its key drivers is being disruptive in education locally with a global reach. We need to drive skills development that is of an international standard but with local awareness and impact. The WYE Trust recognised this as a fundamental game-changer for its directives.

Addressing the skills shortage in SA – Why companies need to re-skill

There is a huge skills and skills development shortage in South Africa at the moment, and Omni and the WYE Trust are addressing some of the key areas facing the worst shortages.

According to the World Economic Forum: “Access to skilled workers is already a key factor that sets successful organisations apart from failing ones. In an increasingly data-driven and complex future, this difference will become even more acute. Skills gaps across all industries are poised to grow in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Rapid advances in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and other emerging technologies are happening in ever shorter cycles, changing the very nature of the jobs that need to be done - and the skills needed to do them - faster than ever before.”

A short-term solution to the current skills challenge, which is growing at an alarming rate, is acquisition. A premium can be paid for talent, but this strategy inflates scarcity and the price of skill. This does not serve the long-term sustainability of the skill nor the workplace. We should also not forget that the skills required today will be obsolete within a much shorter timeframe, as we are in a continuous change cycle that is further compounded by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA).

Considering global and local factors, skills development should be framed within the context of present and future requirements. We cannot operate with a shortsighted survivalist mentality and only develop skills that meet our demands now. We must make space for a more strategic, future-focused skills development strategy.

“Organisations’ have to realise that investing in their workforce to re-skill is non-negotiable. We cannot continue a skills acquisition pathway – we need to develop the skills we need. We need to participate in the value chain of skills development to enable industry sustainability, not only ensuring organisational sustainability. Tapping into collaboration across the value chain is important. We need to work with each other. Organisations, skills development partners and policymakers need to engage to ensure skills development strategies align to the increasing demand for future skills. One could say we need to all work toward a culture of lifelong learning!” Moldenhauer declares.

The current Skills Development Era requires two unique skills-development pathways:

  • One focused on the skills required for the current context, and
  • the other completely future-focused.

The Skills Development Strategy is therefore no longer a one-dimensional or reactive one, it requires a broad contextual understanding of global challenges, local implication, and individual application. Organisations need to be visionary, aspirational and contextual, and then align this thinking to the individuals’ (employee/learner) unique circumstances.

The Technical Report for the 2020 Critical Skills List is one of the research documents together with the National Development Plan Omni uses to help formulate strategies to serve the broader South African market linked to skills shortages. The company works in partnership with its clients to formulate skills-development strategies that speak to their unique skills-shortage needs. National skill needs directly impact skills development, and only through business development and talent management within the necessary sectors of the economy is it possible to achieve effective skills planning with stakeholders to address these needs.

Advice for women and youth aspiring to be great business leaders

“It is amazing that when we frame ‘great business leaders’ our natural first response would be a Silicon Valley success, but I can tell you from personal experience that business success is more real and relatable when we look at the great role models we have in society. Individuals that have risen above their circumstances and have worked towards a living to survive and be better than they were the day before,” Moldenhauer explains.

“Greatness is not achieved by ‘overnight success’. There is no such thing. It requires hard work, tenacity, perseverance, and grit – to name a few. It is the self-discipline you have daily when everyone else is sleeping, partying, or just doing what they ‘feel’ like doing. Who wants to work 16-hour days? Only people that have the determination to achieve their dreams. So, find people who inspire you, who challenge you. Find a mentor! And if you fail – which you will – fail forward. Learn and move on, that is how we get to our goals, aspirations, and dreams. And don’t let anyone tell you: ‘You can’t!’ Because the saying is true: if you believe you can’t, or if you believe you can - either way, you are correct.”

For more details contact: [email protected]


Related Posts

Omni HR Consulting has decided to seek global certification with The CPD Services in the UK, benchmarking the organisation and its programmes against global standards.

After implementing Open-Source Training in 2021, Omni HR Consulting is shifting gears to bring to its community, nine sessions in 2022 starting at the end of March!

The value-alignment has seen Omni’s mission to be disruptive in education, expedited with the introduction of an e-Assessment and e-Portfolio, powered by P4P.

1 2 3 9
>