Years of working with data and a desire to explore its value in business led Dr Mpumelelo Mbatha to pursue a Doctor of Management in Technology and Innovation at The DaVinci Institute. His research focused on a value-driven data science framework in the mining sector, drawing on his experience in analytics, business intelligence and digital transformation.
The DaVinci Institute congratulates Dr Mbatha on his achievement and celebrates the determination that carried him through his doctoral journey.
A career built around data and business improvement
Dr Mbatha’s professional journey began in the public sector at the South African Post Office, where he initially worked as a production planner in the production engineering department. He later moved into a regional role as a chief analyst, leading analysts who used business intelligence to support operational improvement.
He went on to join Anglo American as a data scientist, working in areas including finance and human resources. His career subsequently took him into supply chain, where his responsibilities included global master data, data integration, analytics and digital enablement.
Through these roles, he has also led data teams responsible for delivering master data and digitisation projects. This experience helped shape his interest in the role data science can play in addressing business challenges.
The journey to a doctoral degree
For Dr Mbatha, the doctoral journey began long before he registered for his degree. After completing his MBA, he spent several years reading, exploring research topics and considering what he wanted to study further.
Finding a suitable supervisor was one of the early challenges. He recalls approaching several institutions but being told that a supervisor was not available for the type of study he wanted to undertake.
Once registered, he completed his doctoral studies in three years. His approach was to make steady progress, setting aside time each day to work towards his goal.
“My approach has been small incremental steps daily. So putting in an hour or two every day, to ensure that there is some form of movement. It compounds over a week, over a month, and then ultimately over two, three years,” Dr Mbatha recalls.
Embracing a new way of thinking
One of the most significant challenges Dr Mbatha faced was adapting his research approach. With a strong background in quantitative work, he had initially intended to conduct a purely quantitative study.
His research ultimately followed a mixed-methods approach, incorporating a qualitative component. Although this challenged him to work outside his area of greatest confidence, he came to appreciate its value in developing a framework and recommendations.
“At a later stage, I see why it was actually necessary to include a qualitative component, because that’s where recommendations of creating a framework basically would have stemmed from,” shares Dr Mbatha.
For Dr Mbatha, this shift helped move the study from understanding a problem towards considering what could be done in response to it.
Celebrating the achievement
Dr Mbatha’s achievement reflects the dedication required to pursue doctoral research alongside a demanding professional career. His journey also shows how a willingness to embrace a different research approach can open new possibilities for learning.
The DaVinci Institute congratulates Dr Mpumelelo Banele Mbatha on this milestone. We celebrate his achievement and wish him continued success as he applies his knowledge and experience in his professional journey.
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