Educational innovation emboldening relevant leadership

Daily Maverick

23-07-2025

In an environment that is demanding greater corporate responsibility, today's leaders must navigate an increasingly complex and dynamic business landscape to advance organisational sustainability. As such, business schools need to teach much more than traditional business theory.
Today, businesses and students are demanding a more holistic business education. One that not only includes rigorous theoretical content but is supported by practical application of knowledge and a strategic focus on leadership development.
The Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) has been at the forefront of South Africa's and Africa's business education for 25 years, delivering an innovative, relevant and future-focused offering.
Educating in a modern world
In recent years, business schools have been criticised for failing to remain relevant in a world where growing economic and geopolitical uncertainty and volatility are colliding with massive digital disruption. Criticisms have included claims that they are not keeping up with the demands of the modern business environment, still prioritise theory over practice, and that they are overly focused on financial metrics rather than the social impact of businesses. With so many challenges facing the world, business schools need to change the way they educate to ensure that they are producing leaders of value; leaders who are ethical, humane, and transformational.
Professor Hayley Pearson, GIBS Executive Director: Academic Education, says, 'Business education is essential to help businesses and society navigate complex futures. Through the GIBS MBA, we are constantly innovating in order to deliver a relevant business degree that moulds Africa's business leaders through a holistic education that combines theory and practice, while building confidence, critical thinking, creativity and self-empowerment skills.'
GIBS MBA – A leading global business qualification
GIBS's holistic approach to education has seen the institution acknowledged as one of the world's leading business schools. Not only has the GIBS MBA been recognised as having the best reputation amongst employers, and their first choice for an MBA, according to South Africa's Financial Mail Top MBA Ranking; the United States (US)-based CEO Magazine, ranked GIBS 18 th in its Global Rankings for 2024, highlighting its status as a tier-one business school.
In addition, the 2024 Corporate Knights Better World MBA Ranking saw GIBS ranked 25 th in the world for running one of the most sustainable MBA programmes. With sustainability a strategic imperative for GIBS, the business school is a United Nations Principles for Responsible Management (PRME) Champion.
GIBS aligns with global educational standards and is proud to hold the prestigious 'Triple Crown' accreditation, an achievement earned by only a select group of business schools worldwide. This includes international accreditation from the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) through its Quality Improvement System (EQUIS), the Association of MBAs (AMBA), and the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). Complementing these global affiliations, GIBS is also an affiliate of the Central and East European Management Development Association.
Regionally, GIBS is accredited by the Association of African Business Schools and locally by the South African Council on Higher Education. The school is also an active member of the South African Business Schools Association and the Global Business School Network, reinforcing its commitment to excellence and continuous development within both African and international contexts.
Globally relevant
These global accreditations and associations mean that GIBS has positioned itself as a world-class MBA offering with many graduates having moved into leadership positions abroad. The partnerships also mean that GIBS is able to offer its cohorts a practical international module where students are immersed in a foreign business through a consulting project or immersive courses.
This compulsory international module is a distinct feature of a GIBS MBA. Each year, the selection of these destinations is carefully considered, tailored to specific themes. In the past, students have had the option to visit countries from around the globe, including the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Spain, Ireland, France, Hungary, Estonia, Morocco, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Mozambique, Dubai, India, Singapore, Vietnam and China. GIBS also offers an online option for those who want to manage their carbon footprint or where affordability may be an issue.
This international focus extends to global leaders looking to bring their businesses to Africa, the world's next growth frontier. Not only does GIBS offer a truly Africa-centric education, Africa-specific international modules are always included in the MBA. Beyond that, however, the degree also provides an excellent networking opportunity as an essential element of any GIBS programme is teamwork, giving aspiring leaders from all aspects of business, local and abroad, a practical opportunity to work with a diverse group of African business cohorts.
A bespoke Africa-focused MBA
GIBS has further innovated in the business education space by allowing MBA students to choose a degree that is specifically tailored to their needs. In addition to the core MBA general management subjects, the business school offers over 90 electives that are clustered to give students a bespoke education that suits their personal career trajectory. These electives are grouped into key focus areas such as Building Personal Effectiveness, which includes critical thinking; Business in Context, which covers topics like corporate governance; as well as Consulting, Finance, Entrepreneurship, and Leadership and Culture, with a focus on ethical leadership. Additional categories include Strategy and Innovation, Technology and Emerging Markets, which address issues such as digital disruption.
In addition, the GIBS MBA also offers students specialised MBA programmes in Consulting, Entrepreneurship, and Manufacturing Studies in partnership with the Toyota Wessels Institute, which is a requirement for automotive executives. The most recent additions to the specialised MBA options are the Healthcare Management track, as well as Digital and Climate Leadership Focus, and Humane Leadership Focus.
Students are also given the option to complete the degree in a format that suits their current career demands. GIBS offers a 16-month full-time option or a part-time option that can be completed in a range of time frames. The programme is further enhanced by innovations like micro-courses, online and blended learning, and fast-paced technological shifts like big data, artificial intelligence and augmented reality.
Leadership is the golden thread for the GIBS MBA
The golden thread of a GIBS MBA, however, is the development of future-fit leadership skills. The institute considers leadership from all angles of the business environment and has structured the MBA degree in such a way as to best equip leaders with the ability to envisage the future and be able to develop relevant strategies to execute those plans.
All students have access to the GIBS Personal Applied Learning centre (PAL). PAL is an innovative way GIBS offers business education, by integrating coaching and facilitated processes into classroom learning. PAL facilitates the development of greater emotional intelligence, adaptability and the ability to lead diverse multi-cultural teams. It also helps them internalise what they are learning.
Having access to the PAL coaches throughout their MBA journey has seen many alumni report that their confidence levels were boosted, their personal leadership styles were refined, and they developed greater self-awareness, enhanced strategic thinking and stronger leadership abilities. They were also better able to work within the high-pressure environment of an MBA course.
The investment payoff
An MBA is a significant investment, and the true value lies in how well students capitalise on the opportunities it offers throughout the journey. Due to the holistic nature of a GIBS MBA, students can look forward to growing on a number of fronts.
Pearson notes, 'The investment in an MBA will guarantee a significant return. Students leave our courses with so much more confidence in themselves and their abilities, seeing them increase their chances for career success.'
A 2024 GIBS survey of alumni revealed that GIBS alumni saw many benefits from achieving an MBA qualification. Nearly all surveyed individuals reported being promoted after completing their degree, with the bulk of alumni (over 40%) reported being promoted within the first year. In addition, nearly all MBA graduates saw an increase in their annual income.
Many students also reported having the self-confidence to leave the corporate world and start their own business, with well over two-thirds of students starting up new businesses or consulting firms. They also noted an increase in international business travel to countries across the world, including the USA, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.
When it came to a question of what made former students proud to be GIBS alumni, the fact that GIBS is a leading African business school ranked highest, followed by the high-quality Faculty, networking opportunities and the quality of the GIBS campus.
A modern degree to meet new world demands
An MBA is the ideal degree for people looking to take their career to the next level in South Africa or to become globally competitive. A GIBS MBA degree is designed to create future-fit leaders who can drive organisations in an increasingly complex world; organisations that are both impactful and relevant. GIBS's holistic approach embraces traditional MBA offerings with innovative approaches to facilitating business studies and leadership training. The GIBS MBA is so much more than a degree, it is a fast-track to business leadership success.