Dear Stakeholder

As always, the ASISA Academy’s annual graduation ceremonies, held in Cape Town and Johannesburg in January, were wonderful, inspiring events. Watching our delegates who had completed the Financial Markets Practitioner Learnership, the UCT-endorsed short courses and the various internships during 2024 beaming with pride as they received their certificates was nothing short of exhilarating.

A very big thank you to our guest speakers, Lerato Nonyane, an Investment Performance Manager at Old Mutual Wealth; Matthew Beelders, Investment Analyst at Core Wealth Managers; and Zwelakhe Mnguni, Chief Investment Officer and Co-Founder at Benguela Global Fund Managers.

Photographs from the graduation ceremonies are available on the ASISA Academy website.

The first event, at the Southern Sun hotel in Newlands in Cape Town, was a dignified affair. Our main speaker on the day, Lerato, an alumnus of the ASISA Academy FMP Learnership, shared her story of “failing forward”, as she described it. Reminding the graduates that they would continue to face obstacles and sometimes stumble, she said they should embrace the idea of setbacks as stepping stones and lessons, not just as scars of failure but badges of courage. She urged the graduates to keep sharing their knowledge and working to inspire others, referring to the words of Maya Angelou, “When you learn, teach. When you get, give”.

Read some of Lerato's story here: Smashing that imposter syndrome.

More inspiration came from Matthew, another exceptional ASISA Academy alumnus, who told a little of his story about going From IFA intern to CFA charter holder. Encouraging graduates to “TASTE" success through technique, attitude, sacrifice, time and eagerness, Matthew urged them to also seek help, find a mentor and set smaller goals as stepping stones towards achieving their dreams.

The graduation ceremony in Cape Town was a wonderful event with inspiring speeches given by ASISA Academy alumni.

At the equally auspicious Johannesburg event, which was held at CedarWoods of Sandton in Woodmead, Johannesburg, the speech by Zwelakhe Mnguni, who is a regular presenter on the ASISA Academy’s Equity Analyst Short Course, certainly matched up for inspiration. Having had a rough start in life, Zwelakhe started his working life as a security guard. Thanks to his clear vision, determination and discipline, he empowered himself through studying, working hard and saving religiously, and today he sits at the helm of a respected firm, which he co-founded.

Noting that having a rough start doesn’t define a person, Zwelakhe told the graduates they had been given a great start by the ASISA Academy, were armed with knowledge and had a notable responsibility. He left them with a thought-provoking challenge: to reflect on how they would take this country forward as a result of this great start.

The ASISA Academy’s graduation ceremony in Johannesburg was filled with inspiration and excitement.

GRADUATE PROGRAMMES

Fezeka Graduate Programme

While our inaugural group of Fezeka graduates were among those honoured at the graduations, the second cohort, who finish their final work rotation in May, are eyeing their entry into the job market. Asset managers who would like to interview the graduates for a position on their investment teams should email adavids@asisaacademy.org.za.  

Orientation week for the third cohort took place in January, with eight new graduates who were selected from a host of applicants. We have altered the programme in response to feedback from our industry partners. The length of the programme increases from 15 months to 19 months. Two of the three work rotations increase from 5 months each to 7 months. A number of industry partners had asked that the graduates be able to stay with them for longer periods. The main focus in the third work rotation is the CFA 1 exam preparation.

Companies that are participating in the third iteration of the Fezeka Graduate Programme. 

Independent Financial Advisor Internship

This year’s IFA internship kicked off in January, too, with groups in Cape Town and Johannesburg completing their two-week work-readiness course with programme champions Russell du Bois (Cape Town) and Mike Clare (Johannesburg). The 27 interns started working at their IFA host practices in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban and East London this month.

The new intake of IFA interns with their programme champions: the Cape Town group with Russell du Bois, left, and the Johannesburg group with Mike Clare.

IMACS@TSIBA Internship

We would like to say a huge thank you to all the companies who hosted our IMACS@TSIBA students of 2023/2024 from August to November last year. The industry truly rose to the challenge when we presented them with what was then the largest group of TSIBA students we had put through the programme since the inception of our partnership in 2011. We are thrilled to report a 90% increase in the number of jobs created through this programme this year compared to last year.

With an even larger class this year of 43 final year students (2024/2025 cohort), the Academy once again appeals to the industry to partner with us by hosting a student for their 4-month internship from August to November this year. This internship is essential to completing their Bachelor in Business Administration degree. Please click here to complete the commitment form and we will contact you with information regarding the interview and selection process.  

Looking a little into the future, companies that are interested in sponsoring the 2025/2026 IMACS@TSIBA programme, which starts in July this year, please click here to express your interest.

2023/2024 IMACS@TSIBA students pictured here with Programme Champion, Anton Berkovitz (standing in the last row), were awarded certificates of completion at the Cape Town Graduation ceremony. 

HIGHLIGHTS

At the end of last year, the ASISA Academy board bade farewell to Asief Mohamed, founder and Chief Investment Officer at Aeon Investment Management, who had served as an independent non-executive director since 2017. I would like to personally express my gratitude to Asief for his commitment to the work of the ASISA Academy, which has been expressed, not only as a board director, but also as a sponsor and mentor who leads the way and literally takes others with him.

Over the years, Asief has always answered the call to present pro bono on various ASISA Academy courses and, inevitably, he would bring along one or two of his team members, encouraging them to also pay it forward. Thank you, Asief, for setting a great example of generosity and integrity to me and my team. 

Asief Mohamed, founder and Chief Investment Officer at Aeon Investment Management.

UCT Investment Management Industry (IMI) Short Course

Combining the best of the ASISA Academy Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) and Investment Management Administration & Client Servicing (IMACS) Short Courses, this course is being launched as a new offering. The pilot has been scheduled to run face-to-face in Cape Town during March.    

Designed in collaboration with industry professionals, this course aims to provide support for members of institutional and retail investment organisations working with investment administration as well as client servicing. It will be delivered in person over six days spread over two consecutive weeks.

The UCT CIS Short Course will continue to run separately as an online course while the UCT IMACS Short Course is still available as an inhouse course. Please visit our website and course calendar for more information.

UCT Life Insurance Underwriters Short Course

Another new offering this year is the recommissioned and reconfigured Life Insurance Underwriters Short Course – back by popular demand. This officially endorsed UCT short course (non-credit bearing) has been designed by the ASISA Academy in co-operation with leading underwriters, senior medical officers and other industry leaders as part of continuing efforts to professionalise underwriting in South Africa.

Recommissioning this course in response to many enquiries, the ASISA Academy has also revisited the format. The course will be delivered as a combination of self-paced learning and online classroom learning. The 6 modules, spread across 6 months, will each include a period of self-paced learning followed by an online masterclass. The course will include assignments and assessments and will culminate in a 3-hour online exam in October.

This very demanding course will be the first short course to be rolled out under the ASISA Academy’s new and improved Learner Management System (LMS), which allows for the incorporation of a blended learning methodology.

In 2024, the Academy trained a total of 4 590 delegates, bringing the total number of delegates from inception to 22 311. We look forward to building on that in 2025. 

For a complete overview of learning opportunities, please visit the 2025 ASISA Academy Learning Calendar.

Retirement Fund Trustee Education

Getting the year off to a flying start, the ASISA Academy trained 86 trustees in single-fund workshops during the month of January. In addition to this, 23 trustees were trained in single-fund workshops in December of 2024. It is quite unprecedented to have trained this many trustees over the December/January period and we are thrilled that so many retirement funds are taking the opportunity to upskill their board members through our workshops.

The ASISA Academy, in partnership with the ASISA Foundation, delivers a range of online, CPD points-bearing workshops on a fully-funded basis to South African Trustees and Principal Officers. The workshops cover a wide range of topics, from Trustee Governance and Ethics to Exchange-Traded Funds, Infrastructure Investing, and Death Benefits. Click here for more information.

LEARN WITH US

The ASISA Academy is recognised as a Level 1 B-BBEE Qualifying Small Enterprise, with more than 83% of the Academy’s beneficiaries being Black South Africans. This means employers can claim 135% of their skills development spend with the ASISA Academy. Please get in touch with us to discuss how we can support your skills development requirements.

Please visit our website for more information on our many learning opportunities. We also invite you to interact with us on LinkedIn.

Best wishes

Alicia Davids
ASISA Academy CEO

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