CapaCiTi partnered with National Treasury Jobs Fund, Naspers Labs, Accenture in South Africa and supported by Salesforce in South Africa and their Talent Alliance programme in pioneering the #SkillsToSucceed initiative. The Skills2Succeed Academy is an initiative aimed at supporting and empowering people to take on the shifting workplace landscape. There is currently a real demand for Salesforce skilled professionals in Africa and we are providing young people with new upskilling opportunities that are altered around existing careers and personal responsibilities, helping to level up their capabilities and map out further career paths.

The second cohort of the #SkillsToSucceed candidates recently graduated with a 100% pass rate and as CapaCiTi we are extremely proud of the hard work of our candidates and thus would like to shine a light on our top achievers in the second Skills2Succeed cohort.

Simphiwe Tshabalala

Simphiwe Tshabalala was born and raised on a small farm in Mpumalanga called Rhino Lodge Game farm, which is situated near Secunda. He holds a hold a Bachelor of Engineering Honours degree, in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Johannesburg. He states that he joined CapaCiTi because, “I had always wanted to switch from an Electrical Engineering career to a Tech career and when I heard about the #SkillToSucceed programme I did not hesitate to apply because I knew it was just the opportunity I have been waiting for, a chance for me to learn tech skills that will not only make me employable in the tech industry but also competitive”.

He states that he really enjoyed his time as part of the programme and he met very amazing people and learnt a lot from the candidate managers, mentors, colleagues, and many other industry experts. Simphiwe was also able to acquire Salesforce CRM skills, Web Development, professional writing, and effective communication skills amongst other things. When asked about his future, he says, “After this programme, I want to utilize the skills I have learnt and get more work experience as a developer. I also want to pursue a Postgraduate Diploma in Project Management and a Master of Business Administration (MBA). In the next 5 years, I want to see myself as a Senior Developer”.

Lebogang Sennelo

Lebogang Sennelo was born and raised in Freedom Park Soweto. She holds a Diploma in Information Technology Network Management which she obtained from Rosebank College. Lebogang applied to be a part of the Skills2Succeed programme because she wanted to upskill and have the relevant job skills for today’s job market, she felt that Salesforce was exactly that.  We asked Lebogang what her key highlights from being a part of this programme were and she said, “my key highlights would include passing my Salesforce Platform App Builder exam on the first attempt with good marks and another highlight would be the personal websites we developed, I never thought I would develop a website on my own and it happened during this programme and it was very exciting”. Lebogang states that, “I feel like the future is looking very bright because now I possess very powerful and unique skills. I see my career growing more into the Cloud industry and I would want to gain experience and not just have the qualifications, I would also love to upskill more and get more Salesforce certifications, I never want to stop learning”.

Yiva Masibulele Maqungo

Yiva Maqungo was born and raised in the small town of Mthatha in the Eastern Cape. He holds a National Diploma in Information Technology majoring in Software Development. He applied to be a part of the Skills2Succeed programme after a friend and former Skills2Succeed Cohort 1 alumni, Zenande, recommended the programme to him and told him that he would be a great fit in the programme.

Yiva states that “I really loved and enjoyed the programme. I found it to be intriguing and that it was a way to have further experience in order to succeed in the job market. I also learnt new technologies and actually broadened my knowledge in CRM and my key highlight was definitely learning about Salesforce and passing my Platform App Builder exam on the first try”. He further states that, “I hope my future lies with Accenture but wherever it goes, I want to build my rapport and get noticed within the Salesforce community. And would love to come back and inspire the next cohort”.

Joseph Dube

Joseph Dube was raised in the North West but moved to Johannesburg for school. He attended the Boston City Campus and that is where he got his System Development Diploma. We asked Joseph about his time as part of the Skills2Succeed programme and he said, “ I would like to say it was easy but it wasn’t there were challenges, but each challenge had a significant reward that contributed to me being more employable so at the end of the day it was worth it. I enjoyed coming into the office every day even though remote work is nice I loved the whole experience there’s nothing I would change”.

When asked about the future, Joseph says, “the one thing that I see myself doing the most is being in a position where I work with people. Originally I would have said being a Full Stack Developer or doing something in Salesforce but now that I have been in a program with CapaCiTi I am inspired to help lead teams and also facilitate training that not only helps people that are still getting into the industry but also help companies develop talent”.

Kefuwe Shole

Kefuwe Shole is originally from Soweto and has a Diploma in Systems Development. He applied to be a part of the Skills2Succeed programme after a friend told him about it and it piqued his interest. When asked how the experience has been, Kefuwe states that “It was challenging, I was forced out of my comfort zone and this taught me a lot and resulted in immense personal and professional growth. I was also surprised by the engagement from Accenture and the JCS sessions gave me tools that I will definitely need in the workplace”. Kefuwe looks forward to working at Accenture and believes that this opportunity will kickstart the road to success in his career. He also plans to study further and eventually become a System Architect.

Read more about the graduation of our second #SkillsToSucceed cohort by following this link.

More about CapaCiTi

CapaCiTi Digital Career Accelerator is the skills development arm of the Cape Innovation and Technology Initiative (CiTi), a non-profit company striving to build a future-fit, inclusive society through technology and innovation. CapaCiTi’s vision is to enable inclusive growth of the digital economy by ensuring a supply pipeline of future-fit, skilled employees with relevant digital skills matched to industry demand.

This is done through innovative training and experiential learning programmes that focus on both technical and professional development. We bring together expertise, technology and resources from industry, academia, government, and impact funders to develop young South African talent with in-demand skills, giving them a foundation for successful and fulfilling careers.

The work we do

Candidates receive blended training at our tech campuses via an online learning platform that promotes self-learning and group work as part of a holistic programme designed to develop digitally confident candidates. Industry mentors provide teams with a business challenge and ask them to investigate a solution and present it back to their mentors weekly. These activities enhance teamwork, communication and create a culture of solution-driven design thinking.

The next Skills2Succeed cohort is set to start their journey! Follow us to see how more lives are changing.

Partner with CapaCiTi to affect real change and build successful futures by following this link.