Africa Management Development Programme (MDP)

This programme strengthens middle managers’ management and leadership competencies. They are armed with cutting-edge management and leadership techniques – the ones needed to excel in their middle management roles, stand out within their organisations, and take their careers to the next level. Considering the competitive and ever-changing business environment, the programme focuses on enhancing entrepreneurial thinking. It equips them with the skills necessary to remain agile in a volatile world and respond effectively to organisational challenges, as well as optimise their teams’ performance and lead with impact. Designed to transition participants from leading teams to leading functions, we focus on reinforcing their managerial skill set and business acumen. This ensures that they understand how the organisation operates, the impacts of both internal and external factors on the organisation, as well as how it affects their leadership approaches. The programme provides insight into best practices in management – emphasising the importance of not performing their management roles in isolation, as well as reinforcing the need to facilitate strategic and performance-related integration within and among their teams.

The programme is facilitated by faculty who are subject matter experts, with significant insight into the private and public sectors in Africa and globally. Participant profiles display diversity across cultures, country-specific industries, and roles, with the majority emanating from African corporates and public sector organisations. The programme places emphasis on the unique challenges of emerging markets, incorporating Africa-specific case studies to ensure relevance while still applying global best practices. Participants will develop a cross-disciplinary understanding and are encouraged to collaborate across diverse business environments and organisational contexts. While the theoretical frameworks and tools are universal, case studies and examples are drawn largely from the political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal factors that impact management and leadership on the African continent. Interactive discussion forums, and the associated project work, are therefore also within this context.